THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


/9S-/ 


CLASS    STRUGGLES 
IN   AMERICA 


BY 
A.  M.  SIMONS 

Editor  of  The  International  Socialist  Review 


THIRD   EDITION,   REVISED   AND   ENLARGED, 
WITH  NOTES  AND  REFERENCES 


CHICAGO 

CHARLES  H.  KERR  &  COMPANY 

1907 


Copyright,  1'JU3,  By  Charles  H.  Kerr  &  Company 
Copyright,  1900,  By  Charles  II.  Kerr  &  Company 


80 


I'fin.ss  OF 
JOilN  P.  UIGGINS 

CHICAGO 


PREFACE 


Whether  consciously  or  not  every  writer  upon 
historical  topics  adopts  some  philosophy  of  social 
development  and  writes  from  the  standpoint  of 
some  social  class.  He  must  do  so  if  his  work  is 
to  be  anything  more  than  a  mere  chronology, 
and  even  then  a  selection  of  events  to  be  chron- 
icled will  be  influenced  by  his  attitude  of  mind 
and  theory  of  society.  Therefore  I  make  no 
apology  for  having  consciously  written  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  working  class,  or  for  my 
belief  that  the  socialist  philosophy  of  history  of- 
fers the  true  key  to  the  progress  of  events.  This 
philosophy  is  succinctly  expressed  in  the  quota- 
tion upon  the  opposite  page  in  the  statement  that 
all  history  is  the  "  history  of  class  struggles." 

Since  the  appearance  of  private  property  some 
one  social  class  has  always  owned  and  controlled 
the  instruments  by  which  wealth  was  produced 
and  distributed.  This  class  by  virtue  of  its 
ownership  becomes  the  social  rulers  and  fashions 
social  institutions  in  its  interest. 

The  methods  of  producing  wealth  are  always 

5 


1362305 


6  PREFACE 

changing.  Chipped  stone  gave  way  to  poHshed 
and  this  in  turn  to  bronze  and  iron  tools,  and 
these  were  finally  displaced  by  the  complex  ma- 
chine. As  a  result  hunting  and  fishing  were 
followed  by  agriculture  and  this  in  turn  by  ma- 
dijnofacture  as  the  basis  of  social  production. 
I  These  changes  in  the  method  of  wealth  crea- 
\  tion  constantly  rendered  the  owner  of  outgrown 
methods  superfluous  and  brought  new  classes  of 
owners  to  the  front.  The  conflicting  interests  of 
the  outgrown  and  the  coming  social  classes  have 
given  rise  to  great  revolutionary  class  struggles 
that  accomplished  fundamental  social  transforma- 
tions. Along  w'ith  these  larger  conflicts  went 
minor  struggles  between  classes  having  more  or 
less  divergent  economic  interests  as  to  details. 
These  formed  political  parties,  factions  and  divi- 
sions, the  story  of  which  makes  up  the  great 
mass  of  history. 

Each  social  stage  contains  as  a  part  of  its  in- 
tellectual and  institutional  fabric  much  that  is  in- 
herited from  previous  environments.  These 
idealistic  influences  often  play  a  great  part  in  de- 
termining the  course  that  society  shall  take. 
They  are  the  material  upon  which  each  new  so- 
cial stage  must  work  in  building  up  a  form  of 
society  suited  to  its  needs.  If  these  inherited 
ideas  and  institutions  are  not  adapted  to  social 


PREFACE  7 

progress,  in  the  sense  of  a  better  control  of  en- 
vironment, then  they  will  either  disappear  or 
social  evolution  will  be  checked. 

This  view  of  history  imputes  no  moral  con- 
demnation to  the  commercial,  financial  and 
manufacturing  interests,  because  they  violently 
seized  upon  social  power  in  different  periods  of 
their  history.  At  these  times  their  accession  to 
rulership  seems  to  have  been  necessary  to  fur- 
ther the  higher  evolution  of  society  which  we 
call  progress. 

If,  today  the  institution  of  private  property 
and  the  further  rulership  of  monopolized  capi- 
talistic interests  is  not  in  accord  with  the  best 
development  of  the  social  whole ;  and  if  this  in- 
stitution and  class  are  'retained  through  the 
power  of  ideological  impressions  inherited  from 
a  time  when  they  were  socially  essential  then 
progress  will  cease  and  stagnation,  or  worse, 
result. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

PAGE. 

Class    Struggles    in    America ii 

In     the     Colonies 14 

Causes  of  the  Revolution 16 

Condition  of  the  Working  Class  Under  "  In- 
dependence " 21 

The   Constitutional   Convention 24 

Rule   of   Merchant   and   Trader 29 

Conquest  of  Power  by  Planter  and  Pioneer    .  32 

The   March   of   the    Pioneer 35 

The     Industrial     Revolution 38 

The   First  Labor   Movement  in   America     .     .  41 

The  Momentary  Triumph  of  the  Frontier    .  48 

Wage  vs.  Chattel  Slavery 49 

The   Struggle   for   the   Northwest    .     .     .     .57 

Rise  of  the  Capitalist  Class 62 

Secession 66 

The     Civil     War 69 

Industrial   Effects  of  the  War 71 

Working  Men  During  the  War ^^ 

Reconstruction 79 

The  Rise  of  Plutocracy  to   Power    ....  82 

Negro  Enfranchisement 86 

The   Growth   of   the   Great   Industry     ...  90 

The  Rise  of  the  Labor  Movement 94 

9 


ZO  TABLE    OF    CONTEXTS 

PAGE 

The    American     Renaissance 98 

Panic    of    1873 100 

The    Strike   of    1877 102 

The  Rise  of  the  Knights  of  Labor     ....  106 

The   Little   Capitalists'    Final   Fight     .     .     .  112 

L.\TER    Stages    in    Concentration 114 

The   Last   Class   Struggle 118 


CLASS   STRUGGLES  IN 
AMERICA 

American  History  begins  in  Europe.  The 
thread  of  events  connecting  the  American  life 
of  today  to  the  distant  past  runs  through  Spain, 
England,  France  and  Italy  back  to  Greece  and 
Asia  and  not  through  Sioux,  Iroquois  and 
Pequod  back  to  mound  builders,  and  pre-historic 
residents  of  the  American  continent.  It  is  in 
Europe  that  the  germs  and  sometimes  the  devel- 
oped forms  of  the  institutions  which  make  up 
our  present  society  have  their  roots. 

At  the  time  of  the  discovery  of  America  a  new 
social  class  was  struggling  into  power  in  Europe. 
Clergy  and  nobility  with  priests,  knights  and 
kings  had  ruled  for  centuries.  They  were  soon 
to  be  overthrown  by  the  rising  class  of  traders. 
New  inventions,  bringing  about  changes  in  the 
methods  by  which  men  satisfy  their  wants,  were 
creating  this  new  class  and  carrying  it  into 
power,  as  they  have  ever  created  new  classes  and 
borne  them  on  to  victory.^ 

IK.  Marx —"  Capital,"  Vol.  I,  Chap.  XV.  Lodge —"  The 
Close  of  the  Middle  Ages,"  pp.   518-19. 

II 


12  CLASS   STRUGGLES   IN    AMERICA 

Guni)t)\V(lcr  luul  destroyed  the  knight's  mon- 
opoly of  military  skill ;  printinc^  had  abolished 
tlie  monopoly  of  learninj^  hitherto  vested  in  ihc 
monks  and  a  chosen  few  of  the  nobility,  while 
the  mariners'  compass  had  broken  the  narrow 
circles  of  trade  and  released  the  voyagers  from 
their  confinement  to  land  marks. 

As  the  trading  class  gained  power  it  changed 
its  location.  The  kingdom  of  trade  had  long 
had  its  capital  in  the  cities  of  the  Mediterranean. 
The  great  trade  routes  of  the  time  ran  through 
the  Red  Sea  or  over  land  to  the  north  to  China, 
India  and  Japan.  Over  these  routes  came 
spices,  silks,  rugs,  wines  and  precious  jewels  for 
the  gratification  and  adornment  of  the  social 
rulers  of  that  day.^  These  came  to  Genoa  and 
Venice  to  be  distributed  over  the  remainder  of 
Europe.  But  the  Moslem  was  cutting  one  after 
another  of  the  trade  connections  along  which 
these  Oriental  luxuries  flowed  to  the  Mediter- 
ranean cities. -"^  Everywhere  the  traders  were 
calling  for  a  new  route  to  India. 

During  the  14th  and  15th  centuries  the  seats 
of  trade  began  to  move  north  and  west.^     The 

*  Edw.  P.  Cheney  — "  European  Background  of  American 
History,"  pp.  9—19.  Aloys  Schulte  — "  Geschichte  des  Mit- 
telalterlichen    Handel    und    V'erkehr,"    I,    pp.    674-5. 

=  Helmholt —"  History  of  the  World,"   VU:8. 

*  Brooks  Adams  — "  Tlie    New    Empire,"    Chap.    IIL 


CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA  I3 

Hanseatic  league  of  powerful  cities  arose  on  the 
shores  of  the  Baltic.  Manufacturing,  especially, 
the  weaving  of  woolen,  moved  across  the  Eng- 
lish channel.^  This  moving  of  the  commercial 
centers  to  the  Atlantic  had  turned  the  face  of 
Europe  westward. 

The  voyage  around  Gibraltar  between  these 
Hanse  cities  and  Italy  required  the  building  of 
larger  and  more  powerful  ships,  which  made 
ocean  navigation  possible.  Some  of  these  ves- 
sels under  the  command  of  Portuguese  navigat- 
ors were  creeping  around  the  coast  of  Africa 
seeking  for  a  route  to  India.^  The  rotundity  of 
the  earth  was  generally  accepted  by  navigators, 
at  that  time,  although  most  of  our  school  his- 
tories state  the  reverse.  In  the  midst  of  this  age 
of  discovery  Columbus'  voyage  was  but  an  inci- 
dent, but  one  of  a  host  of  adventurous  voyages, 
some  one  of  which  was  sure  to  sooner  or  later 
land  on  an  American  coast.*^ 

^  Cunningham  — "  Growth    of     English     Industry     and     Com- 
merce,"   1:373-9. 

^  Cheney,   op.   cit.,   pp.   66-8. 

'  Cambridge   Modern   History,   1:7-20. 


14  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


IN  THE  COLONIES 

During  the  first  few  years  of  settlement  man 
bulked  small  compared  with  the  untrodden  con- 
tinent, and  geographical  conditions  were  of  more 
importance  than  industrial  in  determining  social 
institutions.  The  northern  climate,  land  locked 
bays,  abundant  fishing  grounds  and  swift  flow- 
ing rivers  decided  that  New  England  should  be 
the  seat  first  of  a  ship  building  and  fishing,  and 
later  a  manufacturing  population.  The  central 
states  with  their  deep  harbors  and  abundant  min- 
erals pointed  the  way  first  to  agriculture,  then  to 
manufacturing.  The  south  with  its  torrid  sun, 
rich  soil,  and  few  discovered  minerals  was  es- 
pecially fitted  for  cotton,  rice,  tobacco,  planta- 
tions, and   chattel   slavery.^ 

Soon,  however,  there  arose  a  division  into  so- 
cial classes.  Along  the  coast  was  the  manufac- 
turing, trading,  plantation,  creditor  class ;  in  the 
back  countrv  the  toiling  small  farmer,  hunter, 
j)ioneer,   the   conqueror  oi   a   continent,   always 

■  Ellen  C.  Semple  — "  American  History  and  Its  Geo- 
graphic  Conditions,"    Chap.    I. 


IN    THE   COLONIES  15 

hopelessly  indebted  to  his  economic  masters  on 
the  ocean's  brim.^ 

The  pioneer  debtor  class  desired  free  land,  low 
taxes,  and  most  of  all  paper  money.  The  cred- 
itor coast  class  insisted  on  restriction  of  land 
sales,  taxation  and  metal  currency. 

Sometimes  this  struggle  between  the  back 
country,  and  the  coast  took  on  a  violent  form,  as 
in  "  Bacon's  Rebellion  "  in  Virginia,^^  Leisler's 
in  New  York.^i  and  the  battle  of  Alamance  in 
North  Carolina. ^2  g^^t  ^1-,^  powers  of  the  gov- 
ernment were  in  the  hands  of  the  coast  and  these 
early  rebellions  were  soon  crushed.  The  com- 
mercial and  plantation  classes  of  the  sea-board 
reigned  supreme. 

*  Shaper  —  "  Sectionalism  and  Representation  in  S.  C,"  pp. 
245-338.     Thwaites  — "  The    Colonies,"    Chap.    I. 

lojohn  Fiske — "Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors," 
11:95-105. 

11^  Fiske —"  Dutch    and    Quaker    Colonies,"    11:184-207. 

^^  Geo.  E.  Howard  — "  Preliminaries  of  the  Revolution,"  pp. 
222-5;  T.  Watson,  "Life  and  Times  of  Thos.  Jefferson,"  Chap. 
V;  Wm.  Edward  Fitch,  "  Some  Neglected  History  of  N. 
Carolina." 


l6  CLASS   STRUGGLLS   IN   AMERICA 


CAUSES  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 

Commerce,  fishing^  and  even  manufacturing 
g"rew  rapidly  durinj^  the  17th  century.  Then  tlie 
EngHsh  trading  and  manufacturing  class  under 
Cromwell  secured  control  of  the  British  govern- 
ment and  began  to  interfere  with  the  profit  taking 
of  their  fellow  traders  in  America. 

The  great  majority  of  American  colonial  mer- 
chants were  smugglers  or  slave  traders  or  both. 
Says  Sydney  G.  Fisher  in  his  True  History  of  the 
American  Revolution :  "  If  we  could  raise  from 
the  mud  *  *  *  *  any  one  of  our  ancestors' 
curiously  rigged  ships  *  *  *  *  we  would  be 
tolerably  safe   in  naming  her  '  Smuggler.'  " 

The  following  extract  from  the  article  on 
American  Merchant  Marine  in  Lalor's  Encyclo- 
pedia tells  us  some  more  interesting  facts :  "  The 
colonists  became  a  nation  of  lawbreakers.  Nine- 
tenths  of  their  merchants  were  smugglers.  One 
quarter  of  all  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence  were  bred  to  commerce,  the  com- 


CAUSES   OF   THE   REVOLUTION  I7 

mand  of  ships  and  to  contraband  trade.  Han- 
cock, Trumbull  (Brother  Jonathan),  and  Ham- 
ilton were  all  known  to  be  cognizant  of  con- 
traband transactions,  and  approved  of  them. 
Hancock  was  the  prince  of  contraband  traders, 
and  with  John  Adams  as  his  counsel  was  ap- 
pointed for  trial  before  the  admiralty  court  of 
Boston,  at  the  exact  hour  of  the  shedding  of 
blood  at  Lexington,  in  a  suit  for  $500,000  pen- 
alties alleged  to  have  been  incurred  by  him  as 
a  smuggler." 

By  the  beginning  of  the  i8th  century  the  Eng- 
lish were  attempting  to  enforce  the  laws  against 
smuggling.  At  the  same  time  they  passed  laws 
forbidding  the  growth  of  manufacturing  in  the 
colonies.  Yet  on  the  whole  this  attempt  at  en- 
forcement was  not  successful  enough  to  prove 
anything  more  than  an  annoyance  to  the  shrewd 
smugglers  of  New  England.  The  tariff  on  tea 
never  bothered  the  colonists  until  the  English 
export  tax  was  remitted.  This  made  it  possible 
for  the  East  India  Company,  a  semi-govern- 
mental institution  in  which  the  king  and  most  of 
the  court  favorites  were  closely  interested,  to  de- 
liver tea  in  Boston  harbor,  tariff  and  all,  cheaper 
than  the  American  smugglers  could  sell  it.  This 
abolished  the  profit  and  when  the  profit  disap- 
peared, smuggling  was  most  effectually  prohibi- 


l8  CLASS  STRUGGLES    IN    AMKKICA 

ted.  Then  it  was  that  the  oppressed  smugglers 
arose  ami  held  the  Boston  Tea  Party. '^ 

Here  and  there  were  to  be  found  the  germs  of 
manufacturing.  Settlement  was  pushing  back 
from  the  coast.  Society  was  differentiating  and 
production  had  progressed  to  the  point  where 
the  colonies  were  to  a  large  degree  industrially 
independent  of  England. 

At  still  another  point  the  interests  of  the  rul- 
ing class  in  America  were  interfered  with  by  the 
British  government.  Parliament  and  the  crown 
sought  to  limit  settlement  to  the  sea  coast,  since 
so  long  as  the  colonies  were  confined  to  a  nar- 
row strip  along  the  Atlantic  sea-board  they  must 
be  dependent  on  the  mother  country.  More- 
over, settlement  interfered  with  the  fur  trade  in 
which  English  capitalists  were  heavily  interested. 
But  a  large  portion  of  the  "  Fathers  of  Our 
Country  "  were  interested  in  western  land  specu- 
lation. Washington  had  used  his  position  as 
Royal  surveyor  to  illegally  survey  lands  outside 
the  royal  grant;  while  Benjamin  Franklin,  Alex- 
ander Hamilton  and  Robert  INIorris  were  land 
speculators  on  a  large  scale. ^^ 

"  S.  G.  Fisher  — "  The  True  History  of  the  American  Revo- 
lution," p.  105;  Thos.  Hutchinson,  "History  of  the  Province 
of   Massachusetts   Bay,"    111:132-3. 

'*  Herbert  B.  Adams,  "  Maryland's  Influence  upon  Land  Ces- 
sions,"   in    Johns    Hopkins'    University    Studies    in    History    and 


CAUSES   OF   THE   REVOLUTION  I9 

In  spite  of  these  causes  for  dissatisfaction 
among  the  ruhng  class  it  was  difficult  to  arouse 
the  great  masses  of  the  people  who,  indeed,  had 
no  particular  reason  for  rebellion  since  their  con- 
dition was  about  the  same  whether  King  or 
President  ruled  over  the  country.  Indeed  it  is 
agreed  by  the  best  authorities  that  at  the  out- 
break of  the  Revolution  only  a  minority  were  in 
favor  of  rebellion,  and  that  at  no  time  save  at 
the  very  close  of  the  war  was  there  a  majority 
which  really  cared  about  independence. 

The  fact  is  that  the  Revolution  was  to  a  large 
extent  a  civil  and  not  a  national  war.^^  Over 
25,000  Americans  enlisted  in  the  British  army,  a 
considerably  larger  number  than  ever  served  un- 
der Washington.  1*^ 

Nor   did   England   offer   a   united  opposition. 

Political  Science,  Vol.  Ill;  Windsor,  "Westward  Movement," 
pp.  43-61 ;  Sumner,  "  The  Financier  and  Finances  of  the 
American  Revolution,"  Vol.  II,  Chap.  XXXIII;  "Old  South 
Leaflets,"  No's.  16,  27,  163;  Hunt,  "Life  of  Madison,"  pp. 
46-50;  T.  Watson,  "Life  and  Times  of  Thomas  Jefferson," 
p.  151;  Schouler,  "History  of  the  U.  S.,"  1:216-218.  See 
also  Robben's  "  American  Commercial  Policy,"  pp.  176-79,  on 
general   land   policy   of   early   years   of   U.    S.   government. 

"  Justin  Winsor,  "  Narrative  and  Critical  History  of  Amer- 
ica," Vol.  VII,  Chap  ,  by  George  E.  Ellis,  "  The  Loy- 
alists and  the'ir  Fortunes;"  M.  C.  Tyler,  "The  Loyalists  in 
the  American  Revolution,"  in  Am.  Hist.  Rev.,  Vol.  I;  A.  C. 
Flick,  "  Loyalism  in  New  York,"  Columbia  Univ.  Studies,  Vol. 
XIV,   No.   I. 

"  S.  G.  Fisher,  "  The  True  History  of  the  American  Revo- 
lution,"   229-237. 


JO  CLASS    STRrCr.LES    IN    AMERICA 

Lord  Howe,  who  was  j^ivcn  command  of  the 
r.riiish  trottps  in  the  early  part  of  the  war,  was  a 
Wliij^.  an  ardent  advocate  of  the  American  cause. 
Most  impartial  students  of  his  campaign  in  New 
^'ork  in  the  early  years  of  the  war  conclude  that 
he  was  really  figluini^-  in  the  interests  of  the 
colonists,  and  that  it  is  to  his  efforts  fully  as 
much  as  to  W'^ashington's  that  we  owe  our  in- 
dependence.'" 

One  of  the  most  striking  facts  about  the  whole 
affair,  however,  is  that  nearly  all  writers  agree 
in  describing  the  revolutionists  as  much  more 
energetic,  coherent,  and  consequently,  effective 
in  their  efforts.  These  are  all  the  marks  of  a 
class  which  incarnates  social  progress,  and  is  at 
least  partially  aware  of  its  mission,  and  this  was 
the  case  with  the  revolutionists. 

"  Ibid,   206-366,   passim. 


INDEPENDENCE  21 


CONDITION  OF  THE  WORKING  CLASS 
UNDER    "INDEPENDENCE" 

When  the  war  came  on,  however,  it  was  the 
laborers  who  did  the  fighting,  as  they  have  in  all 
the  wars  before  or  since  the  Revolution.  When 
they  had  at  last  gained  the  victory,  after  having 
shed  their  blood  and  suffered  untold  miseries 
from  Lexington  and  Valley  Forge  to  Yorktown, 
they  found,  as  the  fighters  of  all  other  wars  have 
found  that  the  triumphs  gained  were  not  to  be 
shared   by    their    class. 

"  One-half  the  community  was  totally  bankrupt,  the 
other  half  plunged  in  the  depths  of  poverty.  The  year 
which  had  elapsed  since  the  affair  at  Yorktown  had  not 
brought  all  the  blessings  that  had  been  foretold 
******  j^-  ^vas  then  the  fashion  in  New 
Hampshire,  as  indeed  it  was  everywhere,  to  lock  men  up 
in  jail  as  soon  as  they  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  owe 
a  fellow  a  sixpence  or  shilling.  Had  this  law  been 
rigorously  enforced  in  1785  it  is  probable  that  two- 
thirds  of  the  community  would  have  been  in  prison. ^^ 

"McMaster,   "History  of  the  People  of  the  U.   S.,"   1:343—; 
348,    passim. 


22  CLASS    STRL'GC.LIiS    IN    AMERICA 

Throup^Iiout  the  war  the  fip;htcrs  and  the 
workers  had  hcen  compelled  to  borrow  from  the 
commercial  and  financial  classes  of  the  seaports. 
These  debts  had  been  contracted  in  prices  fixed 
l)y  continental  currency.  Now  it  was  proposed 
to  collect  them  in  gold.  State  debts  and  na- 
tional debts  were  added  to  private  indebtedness 
until  for  once  in  the  world  "  the  lawyers  were 
overwhelmed  with  cases.  The  courts  could  not 
try  half  that  came  before  them."  To  collect 
these  debts,  to  lay  a  tarifif  for  the  benefit  of  the 
manufacturers  that  had  sprung  up  during  the 
war,^^  to  give  bounties  to  the  fisheries,  ^o  and  to 
make  commercial  treaties  with  other  countries,^! 
the  ruling  class  needed  a  strong  national  govern- 
ment. 

Perhaps  the  principal  cause  of  the  formation 
of  the  national  government  was  to  prevent  the 
capture  of  power  by  the  debtor  class.     In  many 

'°  Memorial  History  of  Boston  (Justin  W'insor,  Editor), 
IV:74— 5;  Annals  of  the  General  Society  of  Mechanics  and 
Tradesmen  of  N.  Y.,  1:12;  J.  L.  Bishop,  "History  of  Ameri- 
can   Manufactures,"    11:14. 

^'  American  State  Papers,  "  Commerce  and  Navigation," 
1:6-21. 

-■^History  of  Suffolk  Co.,  Mass.,  p.  84;  W.  G.  Sumner,  "The 
Financier  and  Finances  of  the  Revolution,"  11:193-204;  J.  G. 
Rluntschli,  "  Die  Grundung  der  Am.  Union  von  1787,"  p.  10; 
W.  J.  Abbot,  "American  Ships  and  Sailors,"  p.  16;  Wm.  C. 
Webster,  "General  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  341;  Memorial 
History  of  N.   Y.,   111:30-35. 


INDEPENDENCE  23 

of  the  states  the  farmers  and  wage-workers  v.-ere 
showing  great  reluctance  to  pay  the  debts  which 
had  been  forced  upon  them  by  the  sea-coast  mer- 
chants and  planters  during  the  war.  In  Massa- 
chusetts they  had  even  risen  in  rebellion  under 
Daniel  Shays  in  support  of  the  idea  that  "  The 
property  of  the  United  States  has  been  protected 
from  confiscation  by  the  joint  exertions  of  all, 
and  therefore  ought  to  be  the  common  property 
of  alL"^^  In  Rhode  Island^^  a- similar  spirit  was 
prevailing.  Under  these  conditions  it  was  time 
for  the  budding  capitalist  class  to  assert  itself,  or 
its  prey  might  escape. 

-^Irving,  "Life  of  Washington,"  IV:451.  See  also  Geo. 
Richards  Minot,  "  The  History  of  the  Insurrection  in  Massa- 
chusetts in  the  year  1786,"  p.  34,  and  passim;  "  Shays*  Re- 
bellion," in  Harper's  Magasine,  XXIV:656;  McMaster,  "His- 
tory of  the  people  of  the  U.  S,"  1:318-20,  391;  George  Rivers, 
"  A  Populist  of  1786,"  a  novel. 

^  Samuel  Greene  Arnold,  "  History  of  the  State  of  Rhode 
Island,"  p.  524;   McMaster,  op.  cit.,   1:337. 


24  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  CONVENTION 

Throughout  the  war  there  had  been  a  tend- 
ency toward  centraHzation,  yet  at  the  close  there 
was  nothing  which  approached  a  real  national 
government.  There  was  no  way  in  which  this 
could  be  legally  procured.  But  ruling  classes 
have  always  been  above  the  law,  so  a  convention 
which  had  been  called  at  Annapolis  to  settle  some 
questions  concerning  the  navigation  of  the  Poto- 
mac, and  which  had  no  more  law-making  power 
than  any  trades  union  convention  which  might 
be  called  to  order  tomorrow,  proceeded  to  issue  a 
call  for  a  national  constitutional  convention. 
Later  this  call  was  endorsed  by  the  now  well 
nigh  dead  Continental  Congress.  There  is  no 
doubt  however  but  what  it  would  have  gone  on 
just  the  same  had  this  latter  formality  been  lack- 
ing.24 

While  only  a  very  small  minority  were  inter- 
ested in  forming  a  constitution,  yet  that  minority, 

*♦  Von  Hoist,  "  ConstiUitional  History  of  the  U.  S.,  1:50-51; 
Schouler,  "History  of  U.  S.,"  1:32-33;  T.  Watson,  "Life  and 
Times  of  T.  Jefferson,"  p.   292. 


THE   CONSTITUTIONAL    CONVENTION  25 

as  in  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  formed  the  class 
which  was  essential  to  social  progress  if  capital- 
ism in  America  was  to  reach  the  developed  form 
which  would  alone  enable  it  to  give  birth  to  the 
better  society  that  shall  follow.^^  But  this 
should  not  deceive  us  into  believing  that  the  con- 
stitution was  in  any  way  democratic  in  its  origin, 
or  that  it  was  anything  else  than  a  straight  busi- 
ness proposition.  The  convention  was  simply  a 
committee  representing  the  commercial  and 
manufacturing  classes  of  the  northern  and  mid- 
dle states  and  the  southern  plantation  interests. 

A  quotation  from  a  speech  by  Madison,  after- 
wards president,  and  the  official  reporter  of  the 
convention  shows  the  general  attitude  of  the 
body : — 

"  The  delegates  to  Annapolis  and  later  to  Philadel- 
phia were  brought  together  in  response  to  the  demands 
of  the  business  men  of  the  country,  not  to  form  an  ideal 
plan  of  government,  but  such  a  practical  plan  as  would 
meet  the  business  needs  of  the  people."  -^ 

"  The  government  we  mean  to  erect  is  in- 
tended to  last  for  ages.  The  landed  interest,  at 
present,  is  prevalent ;  but  in  process  of  time  when 
we  approximate  to  the  states  and  kingdoms  of 

25  John  T.  Morse,   "  Life  of  A.  Hamilton,"  pp.  177,  197. 
^  McMaster,    "  The    Acquisition    of    the    Political,    Social    and 
Industrial  Rights  of  Man  in  America,"  p.  27. 


26  CLASS   STRUGGLES   IN    AMERICA 

Europe ;  when  the  ininiber  of  landholders  shall 
be  comparatively  small,  =!=***  will  not  the 
landed  interest  be  overbalanced  in  future  elec- 
tions, and  unless  wisely  provided  against,  what 
will  become  of  your  government?  *  *  *  *  jf 
tliese  observations  be  just,  our  government 
ought  to  secure  the  permanent  interests  of  the 
country  against  innovation.  Landholders  ought 
to  have  a  share  in  the  government  to  support 
these  invaluable  interests,  and  to  balance  and 
check  the  other.  They  ought  to  be  so  consti- 
tuted as  to  protect  the  minority  of  the  opulent 
against  the  majority.  The  Senate,  therefore 
ought  to  be  this  body ;  and  answer  these  pur- 
poses."2" 

The  northern  and  the  southern  capitalists  did 
not  entirely  agree  on  details.  The  main  differ- 
ences in  the  constitutional  convention  gradually 
narrowed  down  to  the  question  of  tariff  and  the 
importation  of  slaves.  The  bargain  as  finally 
struck  permitted  the  importation  of  slaves  until 
1808  in  exchange  for  the  right  to  impose  a  pro- 
tective tariff.  Just  how  much  any  humanitarian 
motives  had  to  do  with  the  northern  opposition 
to  slavery  is  seen  from  the  following  quotation 
from  a  speech  which  Mr.  Ellsworth  of  Connecti- 

"  Robert    Yates,     "  Secret    Debates    of    the    Convention,"    p. 
183. 


THE   CONSTITUTIONAL    CONVENTION  2'] 

cut  made  in  the  constitutional  convention :  *  * 
*  ''^  ''^'  "  Let  us  not  intermeddle,  as  population 
increases  poor  laborers  will  be  so  plenty  as  to 
render  slaves  useless.^s  While  John  Adams  de- 
clared his  opinion  in  a  speech  in  the  Continental 
Congress  that, 

"  It  is  of  no  consequence  by  what  name  you  call  your 
people,  whether  by  that  of  freeman  or  slave.  In  some 
countries  the  laboring  poor  men  are  called  freemen,  in 
others  they  are  called  slaves,  but  the  difference  is  im- 
aginary only.  What  matters  it  whether  a  landlord  em- 
ploying ten  laborers  on  his  farm  gives  them  annually 
as  much  as  will  buy  the  necessaries  of  life  or  gives 
them  those  necessaries  at  short  hand  ?  " 

When  the  constitution  was  finally  formulated 
by  this  little  group  of  wage  and  chattel  slave 
owners  the  question  of  its  adoption  by  the  states 
came  up.  Many  people  are  under  the  impres- 
sion that  it  was  adopted  by  a  majority  vote  of 
the  population.  The  fact  is  that  "  There  were 
probably  not  more  than  one  hundred  and  twenty 
thousand  men  who  had  the  right  to  vote  out  of 
all  the  four  million  inhabitants."^^ 

Even  these  few  citizens  were  not  allowed  to 
vote  directly,  but  were  only  permitted  to  choose 

^  Hart,  "  American  History  Told  by  Contemporaries,"  III : 
218;    Elliot,    "Debates,"   V:459-461. 

2'  Woodrow  Wilson's  "  History  of  the  American  People," 
111:120. 


28  CLASS  sTurG(;M:s  in  amkrica 

delegates  to  conventions  from  districts  carefully 
gerrymandered  against  the  back-country  dis- 
tricts ;  so  that  in  the  end  it  was  once  more  a  very 
small  minority  which  ruled.  The  effect  on  the 
country  of  the  adoption  of  the  constitution  is 
described  by  McMaster  as  follows: 

"  All  who  possessed  estates,  who  were  engaged  in 
traffic,  or  held  any  of  the  final  settlements  and  deprecia- 
tion certificates,  felt  safe. 

"  The  multitude,  however,  were  indifferent.  That 
great  mass  of  the  community  whose  lot  it  was  to  eat 
bread  in  the  sweat  of  their  face  tliought  it  a  matter  of 
no  importance  whether  there  was  one  republic  or  three, 
whether  they  were  ruled  by  a  monarch  or  governed  by 
a  senate.  So  long  as  the  crops  were  good,  wages  high 
and  food  cheap,  the  sum  of  their  happiness  was  likely 
to  be  much  the  same  under  one  form  of  government  as 
under  another."  ^^ 

The  vote  on  the  constitution  clearly  brought 
out  the  lines  of  the  first  political  class  struggle  in 
America.  The  small  farmers,  frontiersmen, — 
debtors,  voted  solidly  against  the  constitution, 
while  the  commercial,  financial  and  plantation 
classes  of  the  cities  and  the  sea-board  settlements 
voted  in  favor  of  its  adoption.^^ 

*'McMaster,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  U.  S.,"  1:299- 
400. 

^  O.  G.  Libby,  "  The  Geographical  Distribution  of  the  Vote 
of  the  Thirteen  States  on  the  Federal  Constitution,"  Bulletin 
of  the  University  of  Wisconsin;  McFarrand,  "Compromises  of 
the  Constitution"  in  Am.  Hist.,  Rev.  April,  ]904. 


RULE   OF    MERCHANT   AND    TRADER  29 


RULE  OF  MERCHANT  AND  TRADER. 

During  the  early  years  of  American  govern- 
ment Europe  was  convulsed  by  the  Napoleonic 
wars.  The  merchants  of  the  United  States  had 
unexcelled  opportunities  to  monopolize  the  mer- 
chant marine,  and  by  1807  American  ships  were 
carrying  the  larger  portion  of  the  trade  of  the 
world.22  f  hg  commercial  and  financial  class  of 
New  York  and  New  England  were  therefore 
able  to  dominate  the  government. 

Under  Alexander  Hamilton  they  proceeded  to 
destroy  what  few  traces  of  democracy  had  been 
permitted  to  enter  the  constitution.  Hamilton 
declared  it  to  be  his  object  to  form  an  alliance 
between  the  government  and  the  capitalist  class 

^-  "  The  growth  of  the  American  mercantile  marine  from  the 
adoption  of  the  Federal  Constitution  to  1807  was  something 
amazing.  During  this  period  of  eighteen  years,  the  registered 
tonnage  of  the  country  was  multiplied  sevenfold  .  .  .  The 
figures  of  1807  were  818,306.  While  the  great  powers  of  Eu- 
rope had  been  intent  on  the  destruction  of  each  other's  com- 
merce, the  merchants  of  the  United  States  had  seen  their  op- 
portunity and  had  made  the  most  of  it." — "  Professional  and 
Industrial  History  of  Suffolk  County,"  p.  102;  Bishop,  "History 
of    Manufactures,"    pp.    47—8. 


30  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

and  he  succeeded  in  doing  this  thoroughly.^^ 
The  doctrine  of  "  implied  powers  "  was  used  to 
extend  the  functions  of  the  central  government, 
— something  very  much  in  the  interest  of  the 
then  ruling  classes.  The  national  debt  was 
funded,  the  state  debts  assumed  by  the  national 
government,  and  preparations  made  to  pay  both 
in  full.  This  payment  was  to  be  made  in  cur- 
rency at  par  value,  although  the  securities  were 
largely  in  the  hands  of  speculators,  who  bought 
them  for  some  times  one-tenth  their  real  value.^* 

A  protective  tariff  was  the  first  bill  passed  by 
the  new  congress  after  organization,-^^  and  a  na- 
tional bank  charter,^**  and  a  measure  providing 
for  the  survey  of  the  lands  held  by  the  speculat- 
ors previously  described  followed  soon  after.^^ 

An  internal  revenue  tax  upon  whiskey,  the 
only  form  in  which  the  western  settler  could  ex- 
port his  corn,  served  to  bring  the  power  of  the 
national  government  to  bear  directly  upon  the 
citizen  without  the  interposition  of  the  state  gov- 

^Van  Buren,  "Political  Parties  in  the  U.  S.,"  p.  165;  J.  T. 
Morse,    "Life    of    A.    Hamilton,"    1:393-5. 

'♦J.  S.  Bassett,  "The  Federalist  System,"  pp.  31-34;  Mc- 
Master,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  U.  S.,"  1:574;  Von 
Hoist,    "Constitutional   History   of   the   U.    S.,"    1:86. 

"Annals  of  Congress,  1:114—115;  Jos.  M.  Swank,  "Notes 
and  Comments,"  p.  71;  Bishop,  "History  of  Manufactures," 
11:14-16. 

^  Dewey,    "  Financial    History    of    the    U.    S.,"    pp.    99-100. 

"  Schouler,   "  History  of  the  U.   S.,"  1 :215-218. 


RULE   OF    MERCHANT   AND   TRADER  3! 

ernments.  When  this  tax  was  resisted  it  also 
offered  an  excuse  for  setting  in  motion  15,000 
troops  under  the  national  government  to  sup- 
press an  "  insurrection  "  of  less  than  as  many 
hundred  settlers.  This  established  the  precedent 
of  the  right  of  the  national  government  to  use 
troops  directly  against  citizens. ^^ 

38  Von     Hoist,     "Constitutional     History     of  U.     S.,"     1:97; 

Dewey,    "  Financial   History   of  the    U.    S.,"   p.  106,    (also   gives 

bibliography) ;    H.    M.    Brackenridge,    "  History  of    the    Western 

Insurrection";    Schouler,    "History    of   the    U.  S.,"    1:290-295. 


32  CLASS    STKLoL.LL^    IN    AMERICA 


CONQUEST    OF    POWER    BY    PLANTER 
AND  PIONEER 

While  the  shipping.  fishin£2^,  and  banking  in- 
terests of  New  England  and  the  central  states 
grew  with  ever  increasing  rapidity  during  the 
first  decade  of  the  19th  century,  yet  their  rivals 
for  power  grew  even  more  rapidly.  The  planta- 
tion interests  of  the  South,  also  aiming  at  control 
of  the  national  government  were  aided  by  one  of 
the  most  revolutionary  of  all  the  mechanical  in- 
ventions that  have  transformed  society  during 
the  last  century  and  a  half.  This  was  the  cotton 
gin,  invented  in  1793.^^  This  invention  multi- 
plied the  productive  power  of  the  workers  in  the 
southern  cotton  fields  from  ten  to  an  hundred 
fold,  and  enabled  the  cotton  planters  to  increase 
their  product  from  18  million  to  93  million 
pounds,  without  any  decrease  in  price,  during 
the  years  1801  to  1810.'*^ 

In  spite,  however,  of  the  great  accession  of 

^  Katherine    Cowan,    "  Industrial    History    of    the    U.    S.,"    p. 
148-9;    "  Eighty   Yeais'    Progress,"    pp.    113-114. 
*»Nilcs,    "Weekly    Register,"    11:146-7. 


COALITION    OF   PLANTER   AND   PIONEER        33 

power  which  accompanied  this  industrial  trans- 
formation the  South  could  not  have  defeated  the 
party  of  Hamilton  had  it  not  been  for  the 
frontier.  The  pioneers  of  Kentucky  and  Ten- 
nessee felt  a  sharp  antagonism  to  the  New  Eng- 
land manufacturers  and  merchants,  who  had 
sought  to  restrict  settlement  lest  wages  might 
rise  too  high  and  the  fur  trade  be  disturbed.^^ 
They  had  also  opposed  the  sale  of  land  in  small 
parcels  that  the  interests  of  land  speculators 
might  be  conserved  rather  than  those  of  actual 
settlers ;  they  had  laid  the  tax  on  moonshine 
whiskey,  and  had  shown  a  reluctance  to  opening 
up  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi. ^^ 

The  southern  planter  on  the  other  hand  was 
an  extensive  buyer  of  the  cattle  and  corn  raised 
on  the  frontier.  A  large  portion  of  the  settlers 
had  come  from  Virginia  and  Carolina  and  were 
southern  in  their  sympathies.  As  a  result  of  this 
alliance  Jefferson,  representing  the  plantation  in- 
terests, went  into  power.  The  frontier  was 
democratic  and  the  southern  slave  owner,  having 
no  fear  of  poUtical  opposition  from  his  enslaved 
workers,    was   also    willing   to  talk   democracy. 

"  Woodrow  Wilson,  "  A  History  of  the  American  People," 
111:184;  Von  Hoist,  "Constitutional  History  of  the  U.  S.," 
1:185-7;  Hildreth,  "History  of  the  U.  S.,"  V:584;  Benton, 
"Thirty    Years'    View,"     1:131-132. 

"Schouler,   "History  of  the  U,   S-,"   1:216-18. 


34  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

This  was  a  period  of  expansion,  and  of  internal 
improvements,  when  the  Cumberland  road  was 
laid  out.  Louisiana  purchased,  the  Lewis  and 
Clark  expedition  sent  to  the  Pacific,  steamboat 
navigation  begun,  and  when  a  vast  army  of 
settlers  invaded  the  forests  of  the  Mississippi 
valley. 


THE    MARCH    OF   THE   PIONEER  35 


THE  MARCH  OF  THE  PIONEER  « 

A  continually  moving  frontier  has  been  the 
most  distinctive  characteristic  of  American  his- 
tory and  it  is  just  at  this  period  that  it  began  to 
stamp  its  impression  upon  American  social  insti- 
tutions. He,  who  would  tell  the  story  of  Greece, 
Italy  or  England  has  but  to  describe  the  birth, 
growth,  and  sometimes  decay,  of  a  definite  body 
of  people,  living  on  a  Mediterranean  peninsula  or 
Atlantic  island,  but  the  history  of  the  United 
States  is  the  description  of  the  march  of  a  gi- 
gantic army  ever  moving  westward  in  conquest 
of  forest  and  prairie. 

This  army  moved  in  successive  batallions. 
The  significant  thing  about  these  is  that  each  line 
of  the  advancing  army  reproduced  in  succession 
the  various  stages  through  which  society  has 
passed.  To  borrow  terms  from  biology,  Amer- 
ican society  has  been  an  ontogenetic  reproduction 
of  social  philogeny.  The  advance  guard  of  the 
army,  composed  of  hunters,  trappers,  fishermen 

*'  Frederick  J.   Turner,    "  The   Significance  of   the   Frontier  in 
American    History,"    International    Socialist   Review,    VI:321. 


36  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

and  Indian  scouts  reproduced  with  remarkable 
fidelity  the  stage  of  savagery.  They  used  the 
same  crude  tools,  lived  in  the  same  rude  shelters, 
followed  the  same  methods  of  obtaining  a  liveli- 
hood, gathered  around  personal  leaders,  were 
often  lawless,  brutal  and  quarrelsome. 

The  next  batallion  on  the  frontier,  and  in  race 
evolution,  was  formed  of  little  groups  of  settlers 
along  water  courses,  building  semi-communistic 
neighborhoods,  so  closely  resembling  the  Ger- 
manic "  tun  "  and  the  Anglo  Saxon  village  of  the 
age  prior  to  the  Norman  conquest  as  to  cause 
some  of  the  foremost  of  American  historians  to 
attempt  to  trace  direct  connection. 

Next  in  order  came  the  nomadic  stage  in  his- 
tory and  the  cowboy,  herder  and  ranchman  on 
the  frontier.  Each  of  these  bodies  formed  a 
rather  large  industrial  unit  nomadic  in  its  char- 
acter and  dependent  upon  the  care  of  animals 
for  its  existence. 

Crowding  close  upon  the  heels  of  this  stage 
came  that  of  small  individualistic  farming  with 
the  little  merchant,  householder,  manufacturer 
and  all  the  characteristics  of  the  early  stages  of 
capitalism.  The  progress  from  this  to  the  pres- 
ent monopolistic  stage  belongs  in  another  part 
of  this  little  work. 

Such  a  frontier  has  always  offered  an  oppor- 


THE    MARCH    OF   THE    PIONEER  37 

tunity  to  Americans  to  choose  in  which  of  the 
various  historical  stages  they  would  live.  The 
unemployed,  blacklisted  workers  of  capitalism 
could  move  into  the  individualistic  stage  or  into 
the  little  semi-communistic  group  of  settlers  on 
the  edge  of  the  forest  who  would  assist  him  in 
"  raising  "  his  log  cabin,  and  clearing  his  land 
preparatory  to  planting  his  first  crop.  Finally, 
not  so  many  years  ago,  if  all  else  failed  he  could 
shoulder  his  rifle  and  revert  to  the  savagery  of 
the  forest  and  plain  as  a  trapper  and  hunter. 

The  frontier  took  the  various  people  who  had 
fled  from  European  oppression  and  moulded 
them  into  the  common  type  of  American.  In- 
deed it  is  only  on  the  frontier  that  a  distinctly 
American  type  has  been  produced  and  those 
whom  we  are  proudest  to  call  Americans  and  of 
which  Lincoln  is  the  foremost  type  are  pre- 
eminently the  expression  of  this  social  stage. 

The  frontier,  although  it  assisted  in  the  elec- 
tion of  Jefferson  was  really  of  little  importance 
in  national  affairs  until  nearly  twenty  years  later, 
when,  under  Jackson,  it  seized  the  reins  of  na- 
tional power. 


38  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE   INDUSTRIAL  REVOLUTION 

Steadily  the  germs  of  the  factory  system  came 
in  during  the  first  years  of  the  American  govern- 
ment. Still  there  was  little  of  it  until  the  war 
of  1812.-**  During  the  embargo  and  the  other 
commercial  restrictions  that  accompanied  that 
war  the  capital  that  had  hitherto  been  invested 
in  commerce  was  transferred  to  manufacturing. 
The  large  demands  of  the  war  hastened  this 
tendency.'*^  Then  came  the  age  of  machinery, 
first  in  weaving  and  spinning,  then  for  trans- 
portation by  water,  and  finally  on  land.  Al- 
though in  1816  it  was  still  estimated  that  '"  not 

"  U.   S.   Census,   1900,   Vol.  VII,   Pt.   1,  p.  53. 

**  Woodrow  Wilson,  "  History  of  the  American  People," 
111:240—241;  Report  of  the  House  Committee  on  Commerce 
and  Manufactures,  Feb.  13,  1815;  Niles  "Register,"  IX:190, 
305;  Cowan,  "  Industrial  History  of  the  U.  S.,"  180-193; 
Bolles'  "  Financial  History  of  the  U.  S.  from  1789  to  1860," 
p.  283;  "American  History  told  by  Contemporaries,"  111:430- 
33;  Benton,  "Thirty  Years'  View,"  1:96;  Bishop,  "History  of 
American  Manufactures,"  11:178—190;  McMaster,  "A  Century 
of  Social  Betterment,"  Atlantic  Monthly,  LXXIX:23,  "History 
of  the  People  of  the  U.  S.,"  IV:324-345,  and  Chap  XLIV  of 
V'ol.    V:    Rabbeno,    "  American    Commercial    Policy,"    pp.    149- 


THE    INDUSTRIAL   REVOLUTION  39 

a  fiftieth,  perhaps  not  a  hundredth  "  of  the  cloth 
was  manufactured  in  factories,  still  the  new 
method  was  proving  its  right  to  survive,  and 
was  steadily  relegating  the  hand-loom  to  the 
lumber  room. 

Iron  and  steel  manufacturing,  as  well  as  the 
leather  industries,  grew  rapidly  during  the  same 
period,  so  that  when  the  panic  of  1837  burst 
upon  the  country  there  were  all  the  beginnings 
of  a  developed  factory  system. 

The  rise  of  manufactures  had  its  immediate 
political  expression.  By  1816  this  interest  had 
secured  sufficient  power  to  carry  through  a  pro- 
tective tariff.46  The  South,  under  the  leader- 
ship of  John  C.  Calhoun,  favored  this  tariff,  be- 
cause they  thought  that  it  would  create  a  "  home 
market "  for  their  cotton,  and  might  build  up 
manufactures  in  the  South,^'^  New  England,  led 
by  Daniel  Webster,  opposed  this  tariff,  and  the 
higher  one  of  1824,  because  her  interests  were 
mainly   commercial,   and   the   tariff   acted   as   a 

*'  Edward  Stanwood,  "  American  Tariff  Controversies  of  the 
19th  Century,"  pp.  123-129;  Taussig,  "  Tariff  History  of  the 
U.  S.,"  pp.  33—36;  Lewis,  "History  of  the  American  Tariff," 
p.  71;  Niles,  "Register,"  July  17,  1819,  p.  351;  Rabbeno, 
"  American  Commercial  Policy,"  pp.  153-155. 

*^  Stanwood,  op.  cit.,  pp.  106,  160;  Babcock,  "Rise  of  Ameri- 
can Nationality,  p.  239;  Benton's  Abridgment  of  Debates  of 
Congress,  V:642;   Calhoun,   "Works,"   11:163-173. 


40  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

restriction  on  the  carrying  trade.''^  By  1828 
these  positions  had  been  reversed.  New  Eng- 
land merchants  had  become  manufacturers  and 
Webster  was  leading  them  in  a  demand  for  a 
protective  tariff.-*'^  The  South  had  discovered 
that  she  monopolized  cotton  growing,  and  Eu- 
rope was  her  best  customer,  that  she  must  buy 
much  of  her  supplies  abroad,  and  that  manufac- 
turing was  not  destined  to  flourish  on  her  soil. 
Still  led  by  Calhoun  she  threatened  secession  if 
the  tariff  policy  w^as  persisted  in.^'^ 

*s  Von  Hoist,  "Constitutional  History  of  the  U.  S.,"  1:398-9; 
Lewis,    op.    cit.,    p.    71;   Webster,    "Works,"   pp.    94-149. 

"  F.  J.  Turner,  "  Rise  of  the  New  West,"  p.  321 ;  Webster, 
"  Works,"    228-247. 

^  Ibid.,  p.  325;  H.  \V.  Elson,  "Side  Lights  on  American 
History,"  pp.  333-337;  Von  Hoist,  "Life  of  Calhoun,"  pp. 
74-76. 


FIRST    LABOR    MOVEMENT    IN    AMERICA        4I 


THE     FIRST     LABOR     MOVEMENT     IN 
AMERICA 

With  the  coming  of  the  factory  came  the  wage 
worker,  the  modern  proletariat  and  also,  as  in- 
evitably as  day  follows  night,  came  the  begin- 
ning of  what  we  now  call  the  labor  movement. 
In  the  early  days  of  capitalism  in  America,  as 
in  England,  no  limit  was  set  to  the  exploiting 
greed  of  the  possessing  class.  The  cradle  and 
the  home  were  robbed  to  secure  cheap  labor 
power,  while  even  in  those  factories  that  were 
held  up  as  models,  the  employes  toiled  from  four- 
teen to  sixteen  hours  a  day.^^ 

As  an  inevitable  result  of  this  condition  a 
solidarity  of  the  working  class  began  to  make 
itself  apparent  Trade-unions  sprang  up  in  ev- 
ery industrial  center.  Strikes,  lock-outs,  boy- 
cotts,  and   even   employers'    associations    arose. 

"Michael  Chevalier,  "The  U.  S.,"  p.  137;  John  MeliSk, 
"  The  Necessity  of  Protecting  and  Encouraging  the  Manu- 
facturers of  the  U.  S."  (1818),  p.  28;  Seth  Luther,  "Address 
to  the  Working  People  of  N.  England "  (1836) ;  M.  Carey, 
"Essay  on  the  Public  Charities  of  Philadelphia"  (1829),  p. 
11;  McMaster,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  U.  S.,"  V:85-86. 


42  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

An  extensive  labor  press,  comprising  altogether 
nearly  fifty  periodicals,  flourished.  This  is  a 
showing  by  the  way  that  is  not  so  greatly  ex- 
ceeded even  at  the  present  time.'^^  por  a  little 
while  a  daily  labor  paper  "  The  Man  "  was  pub- 
lished in  New  York  city.  It  is  noteworthy 
that  in  many  points  the  trade  union  movement 
at  this  time  was  in  advance  of  the  English 
movement,  from  which  all  of  our  historians 
agree  that  it  was  copied.  Historians  sometimes 
agree  on  remarkable  things. 

Such  an  extensive  movement  as  this  was  cer- 
tain to  enter  the  political  field.  We  are  not 
therefore  surprised  to  find  labor  tickets  in  nomi- 
nation in  several  cities,  some  of  which  were  par- 
tially successful. 

It  is  when  we  come  to  study  the  principles 
and  platforms  of  these  early  working-class  move- 
ments that  we  meet  with  their  most  important 
and  also  most  surprising  phrase.  The  germs  of 
the  theory  of  surplus  value,  very  clear  statements 

"  Most  of  my  information  on  this  subject  is  gained  from 
examination  of  the  original  copies  of  these  labor  papers  which 
have  been  preserved  in  the  National  Library  at  Washington, 
and  in  other  libraries.  I  have  also  been  permitted  to  consult 
the  large  amount  of  material  gathered  by  the  University  of 
Wisconsin,  under  the  direction  of  Professors  John  R.  Com- 
mons and  R.  T.  Ely.  As  these  references  are  not  accessible  to 
the  ordinary  reader  it  would  be  useless  to  cite  them.  Second- 
ary accounts  as  a  general   thing  are  worse   than   useless. 3 


FIRST   LABOR    MOVEMENT    IN    AMERICA       43 

of  the  class  struggle  and  its  necessary  political 
expression,  and  especially  of  the  representation 
of  interests  by  political  parties  will  be  found 
in  these  writings,  a  generation  before  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  Communist  Manifesto. 

Five  industrial  classes  were  at  this  time  strug- 
gling for  the  mastery  in  America.  The  planta- 
tion South  in  alliance  with  the  pioneer  West 
held  the  reins  of  power.  However,  their  in- 
terests were  by  no  means  identical  and  there 
were  many  points  of  disagreement  concerning  a 
political  program.  In  the  North  the  commercial 
class  was  just  giving  way  to  the  manufacturing 
class  and  arrayed  against  this  latter  was  arising 
the  new  social  force  of  the  proletariat. 

Owing  to  this  diversity  of  class  interests  the 
workmen  were  able  to  exert  a  considerable  in- 
fluence in  the  moulding  of  institutions.  The 
pioneer  and  the  South  were  not  particularly 
averse  to  some  democratic  institutions,  especially 
the  wider  extension  of  the  suffrage.  The  com- 
mercial classes  of  New  England,  robbed  of  their 
function  as  a  ruling  class,  while  still  retaining 
sufficient  wealth  to  maintain  them  in  leisure  were 
dying  out  in  a  blaze  of  intellectual  fireworks. 
The  principal  manifestation  of  this  was  the  great 
transcendental  movement,  with  Emerson,  Thor- 
eau,   Hawthorne,   Channing  and   Lowell   as  its 


44  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

most  prominent  representatives.  The  social  con- 
fusion produced  by  the  swift  changes  of  the  in- 
dustrial revolution  in  the  midst  of  these  con- 
tendijig  classes  led  to  a  corresponding  intellec- 
tual confusion.  It  was  a  time  of  the  origin  of 
"  isms ",  including  spiritualism,  mesmerism, 
communism,  phrenology  and  hydropathy,  togeth- 
er with  most  of  the  freak  philosophies  that  re- 
main even  till  the  present  day.^^  These  were  but 
the  efflorescence  of  the  intellectual  growth  that 
gave  rise  to  the  greatest  accession  which  Amer- 
ican literature  has  yet  received.  A  literature 
springing  from  such  industrial  conditions  could 
not  fail  to  be  more  or  less  rebellious  and  tinged 
with  the  humanitarian  aspect,  and  it  is  just  these 
characteristics  that  most  accurately  describe  the 
w^ork  of  the  writers  mentioned.  One  who  reads 
Thoreau's  "  Walden,"  the  editorials  of  Dana,  the 
essays  of  Emerson,  or  the  poems  of  Lowell  will 
be  surprised  to  see  how  great  a  contribution  to 
the  world's  literature  of  revolt  is  to  be  found 
therein. 

Into  the  midst  of  this  storm  and  stress  was 
born  the  new  labor  movement.  It  demanded  uni- 
versal suffrage,  abolition  of  capital  punishment, 
imprisonment  for  debt,  reform  of  the  existing 
militia  system,  election  of  members  of  the  legis- 

"Schouler,  "History  of  the  U.   S.,"  IV:3lO-311. 


FIRST    LABOR    MOVEMENT    IN    AMERICA        45 

lature  by  districts,  exemption  of  a  minimum  of 
property  from  execution  for  debt,  simplification 
of  legal  proceedure,  establishment  of  a  mechan- 
ics' lien  law,  and  perhaps  most  important  of  all, 
the  extension  of  public  education.  Mass  meet- 
ings of  the  workers  in  New  York,  Boston  and 
Philadelphia  placed  general  education  as  fore- 
most among  the  demands  of  the  working  class. 
Every  platform  of  the  workingmen's  political 
parties  of  that  time  contained  a  demand  for  the 
formation  of  a  public  school  system  and  it  is  as 
certain  as  a  causal  relation  ever  can  be,  that 
to  this  early  labor  movement  more  than  to  any 
one  cause  we  owe  the  great  "  educational  re- 
vival "  of  the  thirties  and  our  common  school 
system  of  today. 

It  is  to  these  early  working  class  rebels  that 
we  owe  to  a  larger  degree  than  to  any  other  cause 
not  only  our  public  school  system,  but  abolition 
of  imprisonment  for  debt,  the  mechanics'  lien 
law,  freedom  of  association,  universal  sufifrage, 
improvement  in  prison  administration,  direct 
election  of  presidential  electors  and  in  fact  near- 
ly everything  of  a  democratic  character  in  our 
present  social  and  political  institutions.  Yet  so 
far  as  I  know  no  historian  has  ever  given  them 
the  least  credit  for  securing  these  measures.  On 
the  contrary  every  effort  is  made  to  make  it  ap- 


46  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

l)car  that  those  privileges  were  handed  down 
as  gracious  gifts  by  a  benevolent  bourgeoisie. 

For  the  working  class  directly  they  succeeded 
in  shortening  hours  and  improving  conditions  in 
many  directions.  They  even  brought  sufficient 
pressure  to  bear  upon  the  national  government 
to  compel  the  enactment  of  a  ten  hour  law  and 
the  abolition  of  the  old  legislation  against  trades 
unions,  which  had  made  labor  organizations  con- 
spiracies. 

The  question  naturally  arises  as  to  why  this 
labor  movement  disappeared.  A  variety  of 
causes  contributed  to  this  end.  On  the  political 
side  the  Loco-Focos,  Know  Nothings,  Free  Soil- 
ers  and  finally  Tammany  and  the  democratic 
party  under  Van  Buren,  took  up  enough  of  the 
working  class  demands  to  enable  the  politicians 
to  swallow  the  young  political  movement  of  la- 
bor. At  the  same  time  the  humanitarian  ten- 
dencies of  the  Transcendentalists  coupled  with 
the  existence  of  free  land  led  them  into  a  com- 
munistic colonist  movement  which  absorbed  the 
energy  of  some  of  the  workers.  This  existence 
of  free  land  to  the  West  offered  an  outlet  during 
the  early  days  of  the  Republic  for  discontented 
elements  and  prevented  any  effective  social  revo- 
lution. This  labor  movement  developed  while 
the  only  connection  between  the  Atlantic  coast 


FIRST   LABOR    MOVEMENT   IN    AMERICA        47 

and  the  Mississippi  Valley  was  by  almost  im- 
passable wagon  roads.  But  by  1835  railroads 
had  begun  to  creep  across  and  around  the  barrier 
of  the  Alleghenies.  This  was  like  opening  a 
mighty  safety  valve  on  the  social  boiler  and  un- 
doubtedly drew  off  much  of  the  discontent  re- 
sponsible for  this  labor  movement. 

Most  important  of  all,  the  titanic  battle  be- 
tween wage  and  chattel  slave  owners  was  just 
beginning.  This  contest  so  absorbed  the  energies 
of  all  classes  as  to  bring  about  a  new  social 
alignment.  Finally  industrial  conditions  had 
not  yet  reached  the  stage  where  it  was  possible 
for  the  wage  earning  proletariat  to  become  the 
social  ruler.  Several  more  generations  of  the 
factory  system  must  come  and  go  before  com- 
petition should  run  its  course  and  grow  into 
monopoly  and  thereby  lay  the  foundations  of  a 
social  stage  where  wage  workers  should  con- 
front capitalists  in  a  struggle  for  supremacy. 


48  CLAS6   STRLGGLt:S    IN    AMERICA 


THE  MOMENTARY  TRIUMPH   OF   THE 
FRONTIER 

During  most  of  the  period  that  we  have  just 
been  considering  the  pioneers  who  had  reached 
the  small  farmer  stage  and  were  located  in  Ken- 
tucky, Tennessee,  Ohio  and  the  back  country 
district  of  New  York,  Pennsylvania  and  Vir- 
ginia were  largely  in  control  of  the  government. 
Andrew  Jackson  was  the  representative  of  this 
class  and  to  a  large  degree  carried  out  their 
ideas.  They  attained  power  only  through  the 
assistance  of  the  southern  chattel  slave  owners, 
by  whom  they  were  greatly  influenced.  In  many 
ways,  however,  they  refused  to  carry  out  the 
measures  demanded  by  their  southern  allies. 
This  was  especially  shown  in  the  nullification 
struggle. 


WAGE   VS.    CHATTEL    SLAVERY  49 


WAGE  VS.  CHATTEL  SLAVERY 

During  colonial  times  the  English  capitalists 
found  one  of  their  main  sources  of  income  in 
supplying  English  colonists  with  slaves.  By  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht  in  171 3  Great  Britain  secured 
the  monopoly  of  the  slave  trade.^^  This  monop- 
oly was  controlled  by  royal  favorites  and  was  an 
important  source  of  income  to  the  crown.  In- 
deed it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  industrial 
foundations  of  England  and  her  rapid  rise  during 
the  i8th  century  was  largely  due  to  this  monop- 
oly.^'^ 

As  soon  as  the  raising  of  slaves  became  profit- 
able the  slave-breeding  states  began  to  object  to 
further  importation.  But  the  slave  trade  re- 
ceived support  from  another  quarter.  One  of 
the  principal  industries  of  Massachusetts  and 
Connecticut  was  the  manufacturing  of  New  Eng- 
land rum  from  East  Indian  molasses.     This  rum 

"  Du  Bois,  "  Suppression  of  the  African  Slave  Trade,"  p. 
3,   and  appendix,  pp.   207—8. 

°' Christy,  "Ethiopia,  Her  Gloom  and  Glory,"  pp.  111-13; 
Wilson,  "Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Slave  Power  in  America,"  1:1; 
Du   Bois,   op.   cit.,  p.   15. 


50  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

was  then  taken  to  Africa  and  after  ample  ad- 
mixture with  w'ater  was  exchanged  for  negroes, 
who  were  then  sold  to  the  southern  planters."*" 
The  ship  proceeding  from  the  southern  ports  to 
the  West  Indies  to  receive  its  load  of  molasses 
would  go  on  to  the  New  England  distilleries 
and  so  on.  It  was  from  the  profits  of  this  trade 
that  the  Puritan  fathers  of  our  country  received 
a  large  portion  of  their  income.  Peter  Fanueil 
was  one  of  these  traders,  and  Faneuil  Hall,  the 
"cradle  of  liberty,"  was  built  from  the  profits 
obtained  from  smuggling  rum  and  capturing 
slaves.*"*'  The  first  draft  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence  contained  the  following  section  : 

"  He  has  waged  war  against  human  nature  itself, 
violating  its  most  sacred  Rights  of  Life  and  Liberty  in 
the  persons  of  distant  people  who  never  offended  him, 
captivating  and  carrying  them  into  slavery  in  another 
hemisphere,  or  to  incur  miserable  death  in  the  trans- 
portation thither.  This  piratical  warfare,  the  oppro- 
brium of  infidel  powers,  is  the  warfare  of  the  Christian 
King  of  Great  Britain. 

"  He    has    prostituted    his    negative    for    suppressing 

"^  Du  Bois,  op.  cit.,  p.  28;  Von  Hoist,  "Constitutional  History 
of  the   U.    S.,"    1:315. 

"  Weeden,  "  Economic  and  Social  History  of  N.  England." 
11:466  et  scq.;  Du  Bois  op.  cit.  Chaps.  II,  III  and  IV;  Spear 
"The  American  Slave  Trade,  pp.  91-9.5;  Phillips,  "The  Con- 
stitution a  Pro-Slavery  Compact,"  p.  CI;  Wilson,  "Rise  and 
Fall  of  the   Slave  Power,"   1:52. 


WAGE   VS.    CHATTEL    SLAVERY  5 1 

every  legislative  attempt  to  prohibit  or  restrain  an 
execrable  commerce,  determined  to  keep  open  a  market 
where  men  should  be  bought  and  sold." 

But  it  was  felt  that  this  was  treading  on  some 
very  tender  toes  and  therefore  it  was  dropped 
out  before  the  Declaration  was  adopted.  So  it 
was  that  the  writers  of  a  document  whose  open- 
ing sentence  declared  all  men  to  be  created  free 
and  equal  feared  to  include  a  condemnation  of 
the  trade  in  human  beings.  In  a  short  time,  how- 
ever, powerful  forces  began  to  make  for  abolition 
in  the  North.  Slavery  was  found  to  be  unprofit- 
able. The  long  winters,  irregular  employment 
and  high  skill  required  in  manufactures,  and  the 
careful  personal  attention  necessary  in  northern 
agriculture  all  contributed  to  make  wage  slavery 
more  economical  than  chattel.  In  Massachusetts 
"  Negro  children  were  reckoned  an  incumbrance 
in  a  family ;  and,  when  weaned,  were  given  away 
like  puppies.  They  have  been  publicly  adver- 
tised in  the  newspapers  to  be  given  away."^^ 

The  invention  of  the  cotton  gin,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  at  once  made  chattel  slavery  immense- 
ly profitable  in  the  South.  This  was  especially 
true  since  it  came  just  at  a  period  when  the 
industrial  revolution  was  marvelously  increasing 

'8  Mass.     Hist.     Coll.     IV:20.     See     also     Williams,     "History 
of   Negro  Race  in  America,"   p.   209. 


52  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

the  powers  of  production  in  the  spinning  and 
weaving  of  cotton,  thus  creating  a  demand  far 
in  excess  of  the  possibility  of  the  old  method 
of  production  to  supply.  For  these  reasons 
southern  society  was  soon  organized  on  a  basis  of 
chattel  slavery.^" 

The  following  tabic  published  a  few  years  be- 
fore the  war  gives  a  comprehensive  statistical 
view  of  slavery  and  the  forces  that  perpetuated 
it.  The  second  column  includes  practically  all 
the  products  of  slave  labor,  embracing  "  naval 
stores,  tobacco,  rice,  sugar  and  cotton. '"'^'^ 

With  such  a  steadily  increasing  mass  of  sur- 
plus value  as  is  shown  in  that  last  column,  on^ 
need  know  but  little  of  the  nature  of  an  exploit- 
ing class  to  be  able  to  predict  that  a  bitter  war 

5»  M.  B.  Hammond,  "The  Cotton  Industry,"  pp.  34-66;  An 
American,  "Cotton  is  King,"  pp.  43—100;  Coman,  "Industrial 
History  of   the    U.    S.,"   pp.    258-260. 


•wThos.    P. 

Kettel,    "  Industry    of    the 

South,"    in 

De  Bow's 

Review,  Vol. 

XII,  pp.  169- 

•185.     See  also 

Turner,   "  R 

ise  of  the 

New   West," 

pp.    47—50. 

Production 

Per  Slave, 

All  Prod- 

Year. 

All  Products. 

Cotton. 

No.  Slaves 

i.        ucts. 

1800     

$14,385,000 

$5,250,000 

893,041 

$16.10 

1810      

23,255,000 

15,108,000 

1,191,3164 

19.50 

1820     

37,934,111 

26,309,000 

1,543,688 

24.63 

1830      

45,225,838 

34,084,883 

2,009,053 

22.00 

1840      

92,292,200 

74,640,307 

2,487,255 

37.11 

1850      

130,556,056 

101,834,616 

3,179,509 

41.60 

1851      

105,304,517 

137,315,317 

3,200,000 

51.90 

WAGE   VS.    CHATTEL    SLAVERY  53 

would  be  fought  before  that  value  would  be 
surrendered. 

For  the  first  fifty  years  of  the  government  it 
was  a  generally  accepted  principle  that  chattel 
slavery  within  state  boundaries  could  not  be  in- 
terfered with  by  the  national  government.  But 
new  states  were  constantly  being  formed,  and 
in  the  territorial  stage  these  were  directly  subject 
to  the  national  government.  This  caused  con- 
tinuous friction.  As  each  new  state  was  admitted 
the  whole  subject  of  slavery  had  to  be  thrashed 
over  again.^^ 

This  western  movement  also  had  an  important 
effect  on  the  industrial  organization  of  the  South. 
With  the  opening  up  of  the  southwest  the  raising 
of  cotton  became  even  more  profitable  than  it 
had  been  upon  the  sea-board.  The  Louisiana 
sugar  industry  also  became  a  great  user  of  slave 
labor.*^2  The  profit  from  these  two  industries 
was  so  large  as  to  cause  the  price  of  slaves  to 
rise  with  great  rapidity,  until  by  i860  as  high 

"^Wilson's    "History    of    the    American    People,"    IV:101. 

'2  The  growth  of  the  sugar  industry  and  its  relation  to  slavery 
is  shown  by  a  table  given  by  Johnson,  "  Notes  on  America," 
11:363:  — 

NUMBER    OF    ESTATES. 

Horse 

Year.                                          Power.  Steam.  Total.  Slaves. 

1844-5    354  408  762  63,000 

1849-50    671  865  1536  126,000 


54  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

as  $4,000.00  had  been  paid  for  ordinary  field 
liands."^  As  a  consequence  of  this  the  south- 
western states  began  to  demand  the  revival  of 
the  African  slave  trade,  in  which  they  were  op- 
posed by  the  slave-breeding  states  of  Virginia 
and  Maryland.*'^  This  constant  rise  in  the  price 
of  slaves  tended  to  absorb  the  profits  of  the 
owner  until  the  point  had  been  reached  where  the 
cost  of  production  by  chattel  slaves  was  prob- 
ably much  more  expensive  than  that  by  wage 
slavery .^^  One  traveler  noted  that  in  Louisiana 
"  The  labor  of  ditching,  trenching,  clearing  the 
waste  lands,  and  hewing  down  the  forests,  is 
generally  done  by  Irish  laborers  who  travel 
about  the  country  under  contractors."  The  plan- 
tation owners  "  lamented  the  high  prices  for 
this  work  "  but  consoled  themselves  with  the  re- 

"  Kettel,  "Southern  Wealth  and  Northern  Profits";  Ham- 
mond, "The  Cotton  Industry,"  p.  51;  De  Bow,  "Industrial 
Resources  of  the   South  and  West,"   11:175. 

"Ingle,  "Southern  Side  Lights,"  p.  250;  Fitzhugh,  "The 
Wealth  of  the  North  and  South"  in  De  Bo-j/s  Review,  XXIII: 
592,  et  seq.  On  slave  breeding  see,  Wilson,  "  Rise  and  Fall  of 
the  Slave  Power,"  1:100  et  seq.;  Johnson,  "Notes  on  N.  Amer- 
ica,"   11:354-355. 

'^  Phillips,  "  The  Economic  Cost  of  Slave-Holding,"  in  Politi- 
cal Science  Quarterly,  XX:257-275.  This  article  also  contains 
many  references  to  other  authorities  comparing  wage  and  chattel 
slave  labor.  See  also  Helper,  "  The  Impending  Crisis,"  p.  363. 
Many  quotations  from  the  less  accessible  writers  are  found  in 
the  International  Socialist  Review,  for  August,  1903,  in  article 
on   "  Economic  Aspects  of   Chattel   Slavery." 


WAGE   VS.    CHATTEL   SLAVERY  55 

flection  that  "  It  was  much  better  to  have  the 
Irish  do  it,  who  cost  the  planter  nothing  if  they 
died,  than  to  use  up  good  field  hands  in  such 
severe  employment."''^  An  excellent  statement 
of  the  capitalists'  argument  on  this  point  is  af- 
forded by  the  following  quotation  taken  from 
the  London  Economist  which  was  at  that  time 
(1853)  the  leading  organ  of  international  cap- 
italism : 

"  Slaves  are  costly  instruments  of  production,  and 
the  commodities  which  they  raise  must  be  sold  to  pro- 
cure their  clothing  and  subsistence.  A  slave  establish- 
ment that  produces  all  the  commodities  it  requires,  and 
sends  nothing  to  market,  may  be  independent;  but  the 
instant  it  works  for  a  market,  it  becomes  dependent  on 
that  both  for  its  sales  and  its  purchases.  As  the  planter 
must  provide  for  his  population,  he  must  often  sell  his 
produce  for  that  purpose.  A  slave  population  hampers 
its  owners  in  more  ways  than  one,  and  there  is  some 
reason  to  believe  that  the  low  price  at  which  slave 
raised  produce  is  sold,  is  the  consequence  of  the  neces- 
sity which  the  slave  owner  is  under  to  sell  in  order  to 
maintain  his  people.  The  responsibility  of  the  em- 
ployer of  free  labor  is  at  an  end  when  he  has  paid  the 
covenanted  wages;  and  his  greater  advantages  in  deal- 
ing with  the  general  market  are  exemplified  in  that 
there  are  more  fortunes  made  by  the  employers  of  free 
labor  than  by  slave  oitmers.  The  Astors,  the  Girards, 
and  the  Longworthys,  are  the  millionaires  of  the  States, 
as  the  Rothschilds,  the  Lloyds,  and  the  Barings,  are  the 

•«  Phillips,    op   cit.,    note,    p.   271. 


56  CLASS    STRl'Cr.LF.S    IN    AMERICA 

millionaires  of  the  world  —  not  tlie  slaveowners,  how- 
ever wealthy,  of  Carolina,  Cuba  or  Brazil." 

There  was  an  economy  in  the  large  plantation, 
similar  to  that  in  the  great  capitalist  industry. 
This  compelled  every  planter  to  grow  or  be 
crushed  out.  So  it  was  commonly  said  that  cot- 
ton was  only  raised  to  buy  slaves,  and  slaves  were 
bought  to  raise  more  cotton,  with  which  to  get 
more  slaves,  and  so  on  ad  infinitum.  There 
was  thus  a  lack  of  flexibility,  and  freedom  of 
application  of  the  surplus  value  such  as  the 
capitalist  possesses. 


THE   STRUGGLE    FOR   THE    NORTHWEST  5/ 


THE  STRUGGLE  FOR  THE 
NORTHWEST 

In  the  North  also  power  and  industry  was 
moving  west.  The  upper  Mississippi  valley  was 
becoming  of  great  industrial  importance.  While 
this  section  was  still  in  the  small  farmer  stage 
it  found  a  profitable  market  for  its  productions 
in  the  South.^^  Indeed  had  it  not  been  for  the 
cheap  corn  and  bacon  that  was  raised  in  the 
Northwest,  and  with  which  the  slaves  of  the 
South  were  fed,  chattel  slavery  would  have  been 
much  less  profitable  and  might  easily  have  been 
impossible.  In  obedience  to  the  principle  that 
political  action  follows  economic  interests  the 
votes  of  this  section  went  with  the  locality  which 
afforded  them  their  most  profitable  market. 
Consequently  throughout  the  forties  and  the  early 
fifties  the  vote  of  this  section  was  largely  dem- 
ocratic.^^ 

Once  more  a  series  of  inventions  and  economic 

®^  Brown,    "The    Lower   South   in    American    History,"   p.    35; 
Turner,  Rise  of  the  New  West,"  pp.  98-99. 
»'  Brown,  "  The  Lower  South,"  pp.  59-60. 


58  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

changes  brought  about  poHtical  transformations. 
The  Erie  Canal,  finished  in  1825,  turned  the 
flood  of  production  largely  towards  New  York 
rather  than  New  Orleans.  At  the  same  time  it 
brought  in  a  mass  of  immigrants  from  the  same 
locality  and  from  Europe ;  especially,  at  a  some- 
what later  date,  from  Germany,  Hitherto  im- 
migration to  this  territory  had  been  largely  over 
the  Cumberland  road  from  \'irginia  or  down 
the  Ohio  from  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania.  The 
majority  of  these  earlier  settlers  being  either 
from  slaveholding  states  or  near  the  border  had 
at  least  no  immediate  hostility  to  chattel  slavery. 
But  the  new  army  of  immigrants  that  came  over 
the  Erie  Canal  and  the  railroads  from  the  North 
Atlantic  States  and  from  Europe  were,  from  the 
beginning,  opposed  to  chattel  slavery. 

About  the  same  time  that  the  Erie  Canal  was 
completed  steamboats  began  to  appear  upon  the 
western  waters  enabling  produce  to  go  up  as  well 
as  down  the  ^Mississippi  and  by  1856  the  steam 
tonnage  of  the  Mississippi  valley  was  equal  to 
that  of  the  whole  empire  of  Great  Britain.  The 
first  steamer  on  the  Great  Lakes  was  in  1819  and 
by  1 85 1  the  lake  trade  was  estimated  at  over 
$3ii,ooo,(X)0.''^ 

**  De  Bow's  Review,  XV:359-384;   Bolles'  "Industrial  History 
of  the  U.  S-,"  P.   590. 


THE    STRUGGLE    FOR   THE    NORTHWEST  59 

With  the  coming  of  railroads  the  advantages 
of  the  Northeast  over  the  South  was  further  in- 
creased. The  surplus  value  of  wage  slavery  was 
so  much  greater  and  in  so  much  more  convenient 
form  for  use  as  capital  as  to  give  the  North  an 
overwhelming  advantage  in  the  construction  of 
railroads.  The  South  with  a  class-consciousness 
such  as  has  been  shown  by  almost  no  other  in- 
dustrial section  in  the  history  of  the  world  set 
about  endeavoring  to  overcome  this  movement. 
Great  conventions  were  held  to  devise  means  to 
improve  communication  with  this  territory  and 
most  strenuous  efforts  were  made  to  retain  the 
commercial  connections  upon  which  they  realized 
their  political  strength  depended. '^*^  But  in  spite 
of  all  that  could  be  done  the  South  fell  behind, 
not  only  in  this  competition  for  new  territory, 
but  still  more  strikingly  in  its  own  internal  de- 
velopment. Chattel  slavery,  with  its  insatiable 
demand  for  great  investments  of  capital  in  the 
labor  itself,  and  for  more  land  for  exploitation, 
prevented  the  growth  of  manufacturing,  even  if 
chattel  slavery  had  been  otherwise  adaptable  to 
the  factory  system. 

'"  Payne,  "  Contests  for  the  Trade  of  the  Mississippi  Val- 
ley," in  De  Bow's  Review,  111:98-111;  Grant,  "Observations 
on  the  Western  Trade,"  in  Hudson  River  R.  R.  Reports;  De- 
Bow,  "  Struggle  Between  North  and  South  for  Western  Trade," 
De  Bow's  Review,  XIV:423-431;  Ibid     XV:313. 


60  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA" 

Out  of  this  situation  also  grew  the  fight  con- 
cerning tlie  tariff."'  In  a  quotation  from  one  of 
the  books  published  in  the  South  at  this  time 
in  support  of  southern  interests  under  the  title 
of  Cotton  is  King  we  find  this  position  stated 
as  follows : 

"  The  close  proximity  of  the  provision  and  cotton 
growing  districts  of  the  United  States  gave  its  planters 
advantages  over  all  other  portions  of  the  world.  But 
they  could  not  monopolize  the  market  unless  they  could 
obtain  a  cheap  supply  of  food  and  clothing  for  their 
negroes  and  raise  their  cotton  at  such  reduced  prices 
as  to  undersell  their  rivals.  A  manufacturing  popula- 
tion, with  its  mechanical  coadjutors,  in  the  midst  of 
the  provision  growers,  on  a  scale  such  as  the  protective 
policy  contemplated,  it  was  conceived,  would  create  a 
permanent  market  for  their  products  and  enhance  the 
price,  whereas,  if  their  manufacturing  could  be  pre- 
vented, and  a  system  of  free  trade  adopted,  the  South 
would  constitute  the  principal  provision  market  of  the 
country,  and  the  fertile  lands  of  the  North  supply  the 
cheap  food  demanded  for  its  slaves.  As  the  tariff 
policy  in  the  outset,  contemplated  the  encouragement 
of  rice,  hemp,  whisky,  and  the  establishment  of  woolen 
manufactures  principally,  the  South  found  its  interests 
but  slightly  identified  with  the  system. 

"  If  they  (the  Southern  planters)  could  establish 
free   trade,    it   would   insure   the   American    market    to 

"*  Burgess,  "The  Middle  Period,"  pp.  110-111;  London  Econo- 
mist, April  13,  1861;  Kettel,  "Southern  Wealth  and  Northern 
Profits,"  passim;  De  Bow's  Review  for  the  period;  Von  Hoist, 
"  Life  of  Calhoun,"  75-76. 


THE    STRUGGLE    FOR   THE    NORTHWEST,  6l 

foreign  manufacturers,  secure  the  foreign  markets  for 
their  leading  staple,  repress  home  manufactures,  force 
a  larger  number  of  the  Northern  men  into  agriculture, 
multiply  the  growth  and  diminish  the  price  of  pro- 
visions, feed  and  clothe  their  slaves  at  lower  rates,  pro- 
duce their  cotton  for  a  third  or  fourth  of  former  prices, 
and  rival  all  other  countries  in  its  cultivation,  monopo-' 
lize  the  trade  in  that  article  throughout  the  whole  of 
Europe,  and  build  up  a  commerce  and  a  navy  that 
would  make  us  the  rulers  of  the  seas." 

After  the  election  of  Polk  in  1844  the  south- 
ern chattel  slave  owners  had  absolute  control 
of  the  national  government  until  the  election  of 
Lincoln. '^2  During  most  of  this  time  the  capital- 
ists were  not  so  vitally  interested  in  dominating 
the  national  government.  With  the  rapid  de- 
velopment of  the  West  new  markets  were  furn- 
ished, amounting  to  a  "  foreign  market  "  within 
national  boundaries.  Many  of  the  capitalist  en- 
terprises, especially  the  building  of  railroads, 
canals  and  steamboat  lines  did  not  require  a 
tariff.  Moreover  the  interests  of  the  North  were 
too  diversified  to  permit  any  unity  of  action. 
The  commercial  classes  of  New  England,  still 
of  considerable  strength,  the  manufacturers,  the 
small  farmers  and  the  frontiersmen  had  no  set 
of  definite  interests  uniting  them  stronger  than 
the  various  ties  possessed  by  some  of  them  to 
the  South. 

"  Helper,    "  The    Impending   Crisis,"   306-318. 


62  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


RISE  OF  THE  CAPITALIST  CLASS 

By  1850  a  class  beg^an  to  appear,  national  in 
scope,  compact  in  organization,  definite  in  its 
desires  and  destined  soon  to  seize  the  reins  of 
political  power.  This  was  the  capitalist  class ; 
not  to  be  sure  the  monopolized  solidified  pluto- 
cracy of  today,  but  rather  the  little  competitive 
bourgeoisie  that  already  had  overthrown  the 
feudalism  of  Europe."^  This  class  had  now 
reached  into  the  Mississippi  valley  and  turned 
the  currents  of  trade  so  that  the  political  and 
industrial  affiliations  of  that  locality  began  to  be 
with  New  York  and  New  England.  This  class 
found  its  political  expression  in  the  Republican 
party. 

This  party  naturally  arose  in  the  upper  Mis- 
sissippi valley  w'here  the  old  political  ties  were 
w^eakest  and  the  new  industrial  interests  were 
keenest.  The  people  of  this  locality  felt  no  such 
close  allegiance  to  the  recently  organized  states 
in  which  they  lived,  as  did  the  sea-board  states. 

"  Coman,  "Industrial  History  of  the  U.  S.,"  Chap.  VII; 
Wright,    "  Industrial    Evolution    of   the   U.    S.,"    Chap.    XI. 


RISE   OF   THE   CAPITALIST   CLASS  63 

Whether  employers,  wage  workers,  or  small 
farmers  they  all  possessed  the  small  capitalist 
mind,  and  all  hoped,  and  with  infinitely  better 
reason  that  ever  since,  to  become  capitalists. 
They  saw  in  the  unsettled  West  the  opportunity 
to  carve  out  new  cities,  locate  new  industries, 
build  longer  lines  of  railroad  —  in  short  infinite 
opportunity  to  "  rise  "  —  the  highest  ideal  of  the 
bourgeois  mind. 

The  Republican  party  exactly  corresponded  to 
these  industrial  interests.  It  exaggerated  the  im- 
portance of  the  national  government,  opposed 
further  extension  of  slavery  and  supported  all 
measures  for  more  rapid  settlement  and  exploit- 
ation of  the  West.  The  first  national  conven- 
tion of  the  Republican  party  was  held  at  Pitts- 
burg, February,  1856.  In  the  address  calling 
this  convention  we  find  the  committee  giving  as 
its  reasons  for  existence  that : 

"  The  representative  of  freedom  on  the  floors  of  con- 
gress have  been  treated  with  contumely,  if  they  resist 
or  question  the  right  to  supremacy  of  the  slave  holding 
class.  The  labor  and  commerce  of  sections  where 
slavery   does   not   exist   obtains   tardy    and    inadequate 

recognition  from  the  general  government Thus  is 

the  decision  of  great  questions  of  public  policy  touch- 
ing vast  interests  and  vital  rights  made  to  turn,  not 
upon  the  requirements  of  justice  and  honor,  but  upon 
its  relation  to  the  subject  of  slavery  —  upon  the  effect 


64  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

it   will   have   upon   the    interests    of   the    slave    holding 
class." 

Here,  and  tliroug^houl  this  document  which  is 
intended  as  a  justification  of  the  formation  of 
the  RepubHcan  party.''*  the  indictment  is  never 
of  slavery,  but  always  of  the  South  as  a  ruling 
section.  There  is  no  demand  for  the  abolition 
of  slavery  but  only  for  its  restriction  to  existing 
limits.  The  fundamental  object  is  to  obtain  con- 
trol of  government ,  that  capitalist  interests  may 
receive  "adequate  recognition."  The  platform 
adopted  by  the  convention  added  a  demand  for 
the  Pacific  railroad,  and  an  appropriation  for 
rivers  and  harbors.'^ 

The  vote  at  this  election  was  small,  but  it  is 
significant  that  its  greatest  strength  was  directly 
along  the  lines  of  communication  running  from 
the  upper  Mississippi  valley  to  the  northeast  At- 
lantic coast.'^^  Four  years  later,  however,  the 
Republican  party  placed  in  nomination  the  man, 
who,  more  than  any  other  man,  typified  the  best 
of  the  capitalist  system,  —  Abraham  Lincoln. 
The  finest  fruit  of  the  Golden  Age  of  American 
capitalism,  he  stands  as  the  embodiment  of  all 

'♦  Hall,    "  The   Republican   Party,"   pp.   448-456. 
'°  Curtis,    "  The    Republican    Party,"    Chap.    VI,    and   pp.    257- 
259. 

"Rhodes,    "History  of   the   U.    S.,"   11:227. 


RISE   OF   THE   CAPITALIST    CLASS  65 

that  is  good  in  that  system.  "  Rising  from  the 
people  "  by  virtue  of  a  fierce  "  struggle  for  ex- 
istence "  under  frontier  conditions,  where  that 
struggle  was  freer  and  fairer  than  anywhere  else 
in  the  entire  history  of  capitalism,  he  incarnates 
the  best  of  the  best  days  of  capitalism.  As  such 
he  must  stand  as  the  greatest  American  until 
some  higher  social  stage  shall  send  forth  its  rep- 
resentative. 

In  some  respects  indeed  Lincoln  seems  to  have 
even  transcended  the  class  from  which  he  sprang. 
There  were  many  times  in  which  he  seemed  to 
have  a  glimpse  of  the  coming  conflict  between 
capitalists  and  laborers  and  to  extend  his  sym- 
pathy to  the  worker.  Yet  we  must  not  expect 
too  much  of  him.  It  has  not  yet  been  given  to 
any  man  to  escape  from  the  environment  which 
produced  him;  had  he  done  so  he  would  have 
been  not  a  man  but  a  monstrosity  —  a  super- 
man. 


66  CLASS   STRLGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


SECESSION 

Once  that  the  capitalist  class  had  wrested  the 
national  government  from  the  chattel  slave  hold- 
ers there  was  nothing  for  them  to  do  but  to 
secede/"  The  margin  of  profits  in  chattel  slavery 
was  already  too  narrow  to  permit  its  continuance 
in  competition  with  wage  slavery  unless  the 
chattel  slave  owners  controlled  the  national  gov- 
ernment. The  Civil  war  therefore  was  simply  a 
contest  to  secure  possession  of  the  "  big  stick  " 
of  the  national  government.  The  northern 
capitalists  wanted  it  to  collect  tariffs,  build  rail- 
roads, shoot  down  workers,  protect  trusts,  and, 
in  short,  to  further  the  interests  of  plutocracy. 
The  southern  chattel  slave  owner  wanted  it  to 
secure  free  trade,  to  run  down  fugitive  slaves, 
to  conquer  new  territory  for  cotton  fields,  and  to 
maintain  the  supremacy  of  King  Cotton. 

To  say  that  the  Republican  party  was  organ- 

"  Brown,  "  Lower  South  in  American  History,"  p.  83.  "  The 
struggle  for  ascendancy  was,  in  fact,  a  struggle  for  existence. 
.  .  .  The  lower  South  was  from  the  beginning  under  a 
necessity  either  to  confol  the  national  government  or  radically 
to   change   its   own   industrial    and   social    system." 


SECESSION  ^^J 

ized,  or  the  Civil  war  waged  to  abolish  chattel 
slavery  is  but  to  repeat  a  tale  invented  almost  a 
decade  after  the  war  was  closed,  as  a  means  of 
glorifying  the  party  of  plutocracy  and  maintain- 
ing its  supremacy.  So  far  was  the  North  from 
wishing  the  abolition  of  slavery  at  the  opening  of 
the  Civil  war  that  in  December,  i860,  after  sev- 
eral states  had  already  seceded,  a  joint  resolution 
was  passed  by  both  houses  of  Congress  providing 
for  a  constitutional  amendment  that  should  pro- 
hibit the  adoption  of  any  future  amendment  inter- 
fering with  slavery  within  the  bounds  of  any  ex- 
isting statejs  Neither  did  the  South  secede  in 
Order  to  maintain  slavery.  This  is  proven  by 
the  fact  that  when  the  fortunes  of  war  became 
desperate  the  confederate  cabinet  proposed  to 
abolish  slavery  as  a  means  of  gaining  European 
sympathy  and  retaining  their  independent  po- 
sition.'''^ In  the  midst  of  the  conflict  the  negro 
was  changed  from  a  chattel  to  a  wage-slave  as 
an  act  of  war,  just  as  the  southern  ports  were 
blockaded  and  southern  railroads  destroyed. 

One  direct  cause  of  secession  whose  importance 
was  carefully  suppressed,  but  which  undoubtedly 
played  its  part,  although  not  a  dominant  one,  is 


'8  Schouler,   "History   of  the   U.    S.,"'- -VtSO?. 
'»  Rhodes,   "History  of  the  U.   S.,"   V:66-67;   Am.  Hist.   Rev. 
1:97. 


68  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

to  be  found  in  the  debts  owed  by  southern  traders 
to  the  North/"  These  debts  amounted  to  some- 
thing between  two  hundred  and  four  hundred 
milHon  dollars.  One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  seced- 
ing states  was  to  promptly  repudiate  all  these 
debts.  This  at  once  brought  to  the  support  of  the 
southern  confederacy  a  large  number  of  the  little 
traders  who  had  no  direct  interest  otherwise  in 
the  supremacy  of  the  slave  holding  class. 

^  Schwab,    "  The    Confederate    States    of   America,"    pp.    110— 
121;  Economist,  London,  Jan.  12,  1861. 


THE    CIVIL    WAR  69 


THE  CIVIL  WAR 

Once  open  hostilities  had  begun  the  actual  fight- 
ing was  carried  on  as  it  has  been  carried  on  in  all 
wars,  at  least,  since  private  property  began,  by 
those  who  did  the  work  and  had  no  interest  in 
the  outcome.  Ilinton  Rowan  Helper,  in  liis 
work  on  The  Impending  Crisis  which,  by  the 
way,  had  far  more  to  do  with  bringing  on  the 
Civil  War  than  Uncle  Tom's  Cabin,  tells  us  that 
there  were  only  about  186,000  actual  slave  hold- 
ers out  of  a  white  population  of  over  six  million, 
and  that  of  these  only  a  few  owned  more  than 
five  slaves.  When  the  war  began,  however, 
these  millions  of  poor  whites  turned  out  to  fight 
to  help  chattel  slave  owners  gain  control  of  the 
national  government  in  opposition  to  other  mil- 
lions of  wage  slaves  from  the  North  who  were 
fighting  that  that  same  government  might  be 
controlled  by  their  capitalist  masters. 

To  the  student  of  industrial  history  the  out- 
come of  the  Civil  war  is  plain  from  the  begin- 
ning. In  military  conflict,  wage  slavery  is  in- 
comparably   superior    to    chattel    slavery.     The 


70  CLASS    STlUGGhRS    IN    AMRRICA 

wage  workers  with  tiiodern  macliiiiory  produce 
sucli  enormous  quantities  of  siu-plus  value  that 
the  expenses  of  war  arc  Hitlc  iikuc  than  a  spur 
to  industry.  The  development  of  the  transporta- 
tion system,  and  indeed  the  whole  industrial  and 
financial  situation  of  the  North  was  of  a  higher 
social  type,  more  complex,  more  effective,  in  pro- 
ducing results  of  all  kinds  than  that  of  the 
South.si 

In  modern  wars,  banks  are  of  more  import- 
ance than  bullets,  and  bonds  out-rank  bayonets 
as  weapons  of  offense  and  defense, 

"  On  comparative  strengtli  of  North  and  Soutli  see  Rope, 
"The  Story  of  the  Civil  War,"  1:98-102;  Rliodes,  "History  of 
the  U.  S.,"  V:384;  Schwab,  "The  Confederate  States  of  Amer- 
ica," pp.  272-274,  and  passim;  U.  S.  Census  18G0,  Vol.  on  Man- 
tifactures,  p.  VI;  for  a  boastful  estimate  of  Southern  strength, 
in   1S02,  see  De  Bow's  Review,  XXXI  :5. 


INDUSTRIAL   EFFECTS    OF   THE    WAR  7I 


INDUSTRIAL  EFFECTS  OF  THE  WAR 

In  very  many  senses  the  Civil  war  was  the 
father  of  modern  phitocracy.  It  was  fought  that 
the  capitaHst  class  might  rule.  Its  progress  laid 
the  foundations  and  mightily  extended  the  scope 
of  the  capitalist  system.  It  is  characteristic  of 
war  under  capitalism  that  it  produces  a  sort  of 
hot  house  industrial  growth.  The  tremendous 
demand  for  a  great  number  of  identical  articles 
built  up  great  industries  at  the  expense  of  the 
smaller  ones.  All  industries  connected  in  any 
way  with  the  manufacture  of  military  supplies 
grew  with  leaps  and  bounds.  Of  the  woolen  in- 
dustries we  are  told  by  A.  S.  Bolles  that 

"  the  mills  soon  found  themselves  overwhelmed  with 
orders.... a  great  many  of  the  woolen  factories  which 
had  been  shut  up  during  the  previous  hard  times  were 
reopened  and  set  at  work.  Hundreds  of  new  factories 
were  built.  ..  .Cotton  mill  owners  resolved  to  turn  a 
portion  of  their  establishments  to  the  manufacture  of 
woolen.  ..  .Every  machine  was  run  so  as  to  produce 
the  greatest  amount  of  goods  and  in  many  cases  the 
mills  were  run  night  and  day.     It  was  an  era  of  great 


72  CLASS    STRUCGLRS    IN    AMERICA 

prosperity.     The  woolen  machinery  of  tlic  country  was 
more  than  doubled  (luring  the  war."  **- 

Tlie  Civil  war  made  iron  the  King  of  the 
American  industrial  world.  The  war  tariff,  rail- 
road building^,  and  new  inventions  all  contributed 
to  this  supremacy.  The  slight  rise  in  wages 
brought  about  by  the  employment  of  vast  num- 
bers of  men  in  destructive  work  caused  the  num- 
ber of  patents  granted  to  rise  to  nearly  double 
those  of  any  equal  number  of  years  previously. ^^ 

This  development  was  especially  evident  in 
agriculture.  It  has  been  said  that  the  Civil  war 
was  won  by  the  McCormick  reaper,  and  there  is 
more  than  a  grain  of  truth  in  the  statement. 
The  improved  agricultural  machines,  which 
could  be  operated  by  women  and  children,  made 
it  possible  to  raise  larger  crops  during  the  Civil 
war,  when  almost  a  majority  of  the  farmers  were 
in  the  line  of  battle,  than  had  ever  been  raised 
when  all  were  employed.  These  great  agricul- 
tural resources  formed  the  backbone  of  the 
northern  power. 

82 "  Industrial  History  of  the  U.  S.,"  pp.  379-383;  First  Re- 
port  Mass.    Bureau  of  Labor    (1870),   p.   111. 

*^  Report  of  Commissioner  of  Patents  (1863),  p.  47;  David 
A.  Wells,  "  Our  Burden  and  Our  btrength,"  a  pamphlet  pub- 
lished in  ISCl,  gives  best  general  survey  of  the  growth  of  in- 
dustry during  the  war;  Rhodes,  "  History  of  the  U.  S.," 
V:190-200. 


INDUSTRIAL    EFFECTS   OF   THE    WAR  73 

But  while  women  and  children  were  toiling  at 
home  and  men  were  facing  the  cannon  at  the 
front  that  capitalists  might  rule,  those  capitalists, 
so  far  from  undergoing  any  privations,  were 
reaping  a  golden  harvest,  such  as  had  never 
fallen  to  the  lot  of  their  class  before.  Internal 
revenue  taxes  were  manipulated  and  their  impo- 
sition "  tipped  ofif "  in  advance  so  that  on  the 
single  item  of  the  whiskey  tax  over  $50,000,000 
were  cleared  up  by  the  ring  who  engineered 
through  this  deal.  The  gigantic  contracts 
brought  forth  a  revelry  of  financial  debauchery 
that  makes  even  modern  "  Frenzied  Finance " 
look  innocent  in  comparison.  A  single  investi- 
gating committee  discovered  $17,000,000  worth 
of  graft  in  $50,000,000  worth  of  contracts  and 
from  our  knowledge  of  the  work  of  investigating 
committees  we  may  be  pretty  sure  that  there  were 
many  items  overlooked.^^  Shoddy  uniforms, 
defective  carbines,  rotten  leather,  and  adulterated 
rations  were  sold  to  the  government  at  prices  far 
above  the  market  rate  for  perfect  goods.  Like 
a  horde  of  vultures  northern  capitalists  fattened 
upon  the  life  blood  of  their  fighting  slaves. 
When  we  remember  that  it  was  right  here  that 
the  foundation  v/as  laid  for  perhaps  a  majority 
of  the  great  fortunes  of  today  we  are  once  more 

8*  House   Rept,  37th  Cong.,   2nd   Sess.,   No,  2. 


74  CLASS    STRLGCLKS    IN    AMERICA 

reminded  of  that  striking^  statement  of  Marx's 
tliat  if  usury  comes  into  the  world  with  a  con- 
genital blood  stain  on  each  check,  then  capital 
"  comes  dripping:  ^vith  blood  and  dirt  at  every 
pore." 

Although  it  was  of  great  importance  from  the 
strategic  point  of  view  that  the  blockade  on 
southern  cotton  should  be  eflfective,  yet  when 
cotton  in  the  South  could  be  bought  for  less  than 
10  cents  a  pound  and  sold  in  New  England  for 
$1.00,  only  a  slight  knowledge  of  capitalist  eco- 
nomics and  their  relation  to  ethics  is  necessary  to 
make  it  certain  that  the  blockade  would  be 
broken  by  the  very  class  who  were  supposed  to 
be  interested  in  its  maintenance.  It  was  stated 
upon  the  floor  of  congress  that 

"  We  have  prolonged  the  rebellion  and  strengthened  the 
arms  of  traders  by  allowing  the  very  trade,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  not  only  union  men  and  women,  but 
rebels  of  the  deepest  dye,  have  been  'fed  and  have  had 
their  pockets  lined  with  greenbacks,  by  means  of  which 
they  could  carry  on  the  rebellion.  Under  the  permis- 
sion to  trade,  supplies  not  only  have  gone  in,  but  bul- 
lets and  powder,  instruments  of  death,'  which  our  heroic 
soldiers  have  been  compelled  to  meet  upon  almost  every 
field  of  batttle,  upon  which  they  have  been  engaged..,. 
I  am  greatly  afraid  that  in  some  quarters  the  move- 
ments of  our  armies  have  been  conducted  more  with  a 


INDUSTRIAL    EFFECTS   OF   THE    WAR  75 

view    to    carry    on    trade    than    to    strike    down    the 
rebels."  *^ 

Of  equal  importance  with  the  mechanical  de- 
velopment in  building  up  a  strong  plutocratic 
class  was  the  growth  of  a  financial  system,  made 
necessary  by  by  the  great  transactions  of  the 
Civil  war.  It  is  estimated  that  the  total  expendi- 
ture of  the  war  was  over  six  billions  of  dollars. 
The  floating  of  this  debt  had  not  only  greatly 
enriched  the  little  clique  of  bankers  having 
charge  of  the  national  finances,^®  but  more  im- 
portant still  it  had  trained  a  large  body  of  men  in 
that  "  high  finance  "  which  was  to  play  so  great 
a  part  in  later  industrial  developments.  It  is 
noteworthy  that  the  present  system  of  national 
banks  was  established  at  the  end  of  February, 
1863. 

A  glance  at  the  South  during  the  war  but  adds 
further  proof  to  the  superiority  of  wage  labor  as 
a  means  of  exploitation.  In  a  short  time  the 
rails  of  the  street  railroad  of  Richmond  were 
taken  up  to  make  armor  for  a  gunboat,  while  the 
worn-out  plows,  old  spades,  axes  and  broken 
stoves  were  being  gathered  up  from  the  planta- 

8=  Cong.  Globe,  June  9,  1864,  p.  2823;  House  Rept,  38d  Cong., 
2nd  Sess.,  No.  24;  Rhodes,  "History  of  the  U.  S.,  V:275-276, 
et  seq. 

**  Bolles,  "Financial  History  of  the  U.  S.,"  111:20,  describes 
the  organization   of   bankers. 


"J^  CLASS    STRIT.GLES    IN    AMKRKA 

lions  to  be  made  into  weapons  of  war.'*'^  The 
railroad  system  soon  ceased  to  be  worthy  of  the 
name,  while  the  postal  system  was  forced  to 
charj^e  rates  which  constituted  a  crushing  burden 
upon  communication,**'*  The  South  being  a  one 
crop  country  depended  upon  foreign  trade  for 
its  existence.  The  moment  the  blockade  was 
made  even  partially  effective  its  industrial  life 
was  paralyzed. 

The  military  campaigns  were  arranged  with 
reference  to  industrial  features.  When  Grant 
had  occupied  the  Mississippi  valley  and  had 
gained  control  of  this  great  artery  of  internal 
communication  he  had  cut  off  the  Confederacy 
from  the  great  granary  state  of  Texas  and  par- 
alyzed one  of  the  principal  nerves  of  its  system 
of  communication.-^  Sherman's  march  to  the 
sea,  with  its  terrible  devastation  of  agricultural 
resources  and  what  few  manufactures  existed 
along  his  route,  completed  the  process  of  de- 
stroying the  already  backward  stage  of  indus- 
try which  prevailed  in  the  South. 

«' Rhodes,  "History  of  the  U.  S.,"  V:390-391;  Fleming, 
"  Industrial  Development  in  Alabama  during  the  Civil  War," 
South  Atlantic  Quarterly,  July,   1904. 

**  Schwab,  "Confederate  States  of  America,"  p.  247;  Re- 
bellion  Records,   series   I,   \'ol.    IV.,   pp.   119-122. 

*•  Brigham,  "  Geographic  Influences  in  American  History," 
p.   202. 


WORKING    MEN   DURING  THE   WAR  ^^ 


WORKING  MEN  DURING  THE  WAR 

While  on  the  whole  the  laboring  class  showed 
little  signs  of  intelligent  consciousness  or  recog- 
nition of  thtir  own  interest,  but  rather  acted 
blindly  in  obedience  to  their  masters'  behests,  yet 
there  were  a  few  exceptions. 

The  only  labor  organization  of  any  importance 
at  this  time  was  the  National  Labor  Union  of 
which  William  H.  Sylvis  was  the  head.  In  his 
biography,  written  by  his  brother,  we  learn  that, 

"  Among  the  workirig  men  a  few  choice  spirits  north 
and  south,  knowing  that  all  burdens  and  none  of  the 
honors  of  war,  are  entailed  upon  labor,  were  engaged 
in  an  effort  to  frustrate  the  plans  of  those  who  seemed 
to  desire,  and  whose  fanaticism  was  calculated  to  pre- 
cipitate hostilities." 

These  men  held  numerous  meetings  both 
north  and  south  and  had  arranged  for  a  great 
convention  to  be  held  at  Philadelphia,  Feb.  22, 
1 86 1,  but  by  that  time  the  war  was  already  on 
and  the  convention  was  insignificant. 

The  only  other  sigti  of  working  class  opposi- 


78  Cr.ASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

tion  to  the  war  was  the  uprising  ap^ainst  the  "  ex- 
emption clause  "  of  the  draft,  which  enabled  tlie 
wealthy  to  escape  from  military  service.  This 
antagonism  reached  such  a  stage  that  during  the 
New  York  draft  riots  of  1863  the  city  was  for 
several  days  in  the  hands  of  a  mob."'*  It  should 
be  noted  in  this  connection,  however,  that  since 
American  industrial  society  had  not  yet  reached 
the  stage  where  working  class  supremacy  was 
possible  this  blind  devotion  to  their  masters'  in- 
terests was  really  working  in  accord  with  social 
progress. 

•"  A  X'olunteer,   "  The  \'olcano   Under  the  City,"  p.   "JO. 


RECONSTRUCTION  79 


RECONSTRUCTION 

A  southern  writer  described  the  condition  in 
the  South  at  the  close  of  the  Civil  war  in  the 
following  words :  ®* 

"  The  people  were  generally  impoverished ;  the  farms 
had  gone  to  waste,  the  fences  having  been  destroyed 
by  the  armies,  or  having  decayed  from  neglect ;  the 
fields  were  covered  with  weeds  and  bushes;  farm  im- 
plements and  tools  were  gone ;  live-stock  had  disap- 
peared, so  that  there  was  barely  enough  farm  animals 
to  meet  the  demands  of  agriculture ;  business  was  at 
a  standstill ;  banks  and  commercial  agencies  had  either 
suspended  or  closed  on  account  of  insolvency ;  the 
currency  was  in  a  wretched  condition ;  the  disbanded 
Confederate  soldiers  returned  to  their  homes  to  find 
desolation  and  starvation  staring  them  in  the  face ;  there 
was  no  railway  or  postal  system  worth  speaking  of; 
only  here  and  there  was  a  newspaper  running;  the 
labor-system  in  vogue  since  the  establishment  of  the 
colonies  was  completely  overturned,.  ..  .worse  than  all 

"  Garner,  "  Reconstruction  in  Mississippi,"  p.  122  et  passim. 
See  also  Herbert,  "  Why  the  Solid  South,"  Pike,  "  A  Prostrate 
State,"  articles  by  various  writers  on  "  Reconstruction,"  in  the 
At.  Monthly,  Vols.  87  and  88;  Wilson,  "  History  of  American 
People,"  V:47,  and  113-114  for  bibliography  on  Reconstruc- 
tion. 


80  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

this  was  the  fact  that  about  onc-tliird  of  the  white 
bread-winners  of  the  state  had  either  been  sacrificed 
in  the  contest  or  were  disabled  for  life,  so  that  they 
could  no  longer  be  considered  as  factors  in  the  work 
of  economic  organization...." 

Such  a  situation  means  that  nearly  all  the 
physical  achievements  of  a  century  of  progress 
had  been  wiped  out  and  that  society  had  returned 
to  a  primitive  stage  accompanied  by  a  mass  of 
handicaps  such  as  never  afflicted  the  early  fron- 
tiersmen of  the  forest  and  prairie.  Out  of  this 
chaos  was  to  come,  as  the  first  coherent  social 
stage,  that  of  small  farming  and  manufacturing, 
— of  the  small  bourgeoisie.  If  this  class  was  to 
arise  it  was  necessary  that  the  negro  be  trans- 
formed into  a  wage  slave.  This,  however,  could 
not  be  accomplished  in  a  moment.  Indeed  it  has 
scarcely  been  satisfactorily  accomplished  in  half 
a  century.  But  if  the  negro  was  to  yield  profits 
he  must  somehow  be  forced  to  work  for  a  mas- 
ter. In  order  to  secure  this  end  the  southern 
states  enacted  the  famous  "  vagrancy  laws." 
These  laws  provided  that  any  person  without 
regular  employment,  or  "  caught  loitering " 
might  be  arrested,  fined  and  bound  out  to  some- 
one to  work  out  the  fine.^-    One  of  the  interest- 

"  Lalor,  "Encyclopedia  of  Political  and  Social  Science,"  rr- 
ticle  "  Reconstruction." 


RECONSTRUCTION  8l 

ing  features  of  these  laws  is  that  they  were 
copied  almost  verbatum  from  the  statute  books 
of  New  England,  where,  to  be  sure,  they  were 
directed  only  against  poor  white  wage  slaves. 

Of  course,  these  laws  had  the  obvious  intention 
of  reducing  the  negro  to  a  state  closely  approxi- 
mating that  of  chattel  slavery,  yet  the  spasm  of 
"  moral  indignation  "  which  passed  through  the 
North  and  which  resulted  in  such  momentous  ac- 
tion, had  far  different  reasons  back  of  it  than 
that  highly  tender  Puritan  conscience  which  has 
served  as  an  excuse  for  so  many  things  in  Ameri- 
can history.  In  order  to  understand  this  we 
must  turn  for  a  moment  to  the  northern  states. 


82  CLASS   STRUGGLES   IN   AMERICA 


THE  RISE  OF  PLUTOCRACY  TO  POWER 

Within   the  capitalist  class  of  the   North   an 
important  division  had  taken  place.     As  the  war 
had  gone  on  the  small  competitive  capitalists  of 
whom  Lincoln  was  the  representative  had  been 
gradually  crowded  to  the  background.     A  race 
of  plutocratic   giants  had   risen.     The  kings  of 
iron  and  steel,  of  banks  and  bonds  and  railroads 
were  now  marching  toward  the  national  capital 
over  the  prostrate  forms  of  their  weaker  fellow 
exploiters.     During    the    closing    years    of    the 
Civil  War  the  beginning  of  this  division  of  inter- 
ests had  appeared,  yet  in  those  stirring  times  no 
opportunity  had  developed  for  its  clear  expres- 
sion.    Now  that  the  w-ar  was  over  a  new  align- 
ment of  political  forces  became  imperative  to  cor- 
respond to  the  industrial  alignment.     The  great 
corporations,  w^hich  Lincoln  had  foreseen  would 
arise  as  a  result  of  the  war,  and  whose  power  he 
feared,    now    began    to    make    themselves    felt. 
They  w^ere  still  too  few  in  numbers  to  hope  to 
control    national   elections   if   the   fight   between 
them  and  the  smaller  capitalists  became  an  open 
one. 


THE   RISE   OF    PLUTOCRACY   TO    POWER         83 

A  little  capitalist  class  was  rapidly  arising 
within  the  South.  It  would  have  interests  in 
common  with  the  members  of  the  same  class 
in  the  northern  Mississippi  valley.  The  forma- 
tion of  an  alliance  between  these  two  forces 
meant  that  the  control  of  government  would  fall 
once  more  into  the  hands  of  the  small  profit  tak- 
ers. Such  an  alliance  must  be  prevented  at  all 
hazards.  So  it  was  that  Thaddeus  Stevens,  a 
Pennsylvania  iron  master,  who  best  incarnated 
the  spirit  of  plutocracy,  arose  in  his  seat  in  the 
house  and  declared  that  the  southern  states 
"  ought  never  to  be  recognized  as  valid  states, 
until  the  constitution  shall  have  been  so  amended 
.  .  .  as  to  secure  the  perpetual  ascendancy  of 
the  party  of  the  tinion."^^  It  is  probably  unnec- 
essary to  add  that  when  Thaddeus  Stevens  said 
the  "  party  of  the  union  "  he  always  meant  the 
plutocratic  wing  of  the  Republican  party. 

The  method  by  which  this  was  done  is  interest- 
ing. Remember  that  a  large  percentage  of  the 
southern  states  had  already  been  reorganized 
under  the  direction  of  Lincoln,  had  state  govern- 
ments in  active  operation,  had  accepted  the 
Emancipation  Proclamation,  and  the  thirteenth 
amendment,  had  elected  their  representatives  to 
Congress,  and,  in  short,  in  every  meaning  of  the 

"3  Congressional    Globe,    Dec.    18,    1805,    p.    74. 


84  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN   AMERICA' 

constitution,  wore  fully  equipped  states  with  all 
the  ri.q;lits.  privile.y;cs,  and  duties  of  any  state. 

This  was  the  situation  when  Congress  met  in 
1867.  Then  began  a  series  of  violent  illegal 
subversions  of  fundamental  institutions,  such  as 
the  iMencli  designate  as  coup  d'ctats,  and  which 
our  historians  always  congratulate  us  on  having 
avoided.  In  the  first  place  the  house  was  called 
to  order  and  the  clerk  was  instructed  to  disregard 
the  laws  providing  for  the  regular  method  of 
calling  the  roll  and  to  omit  from  his  roll  all  those 
states  whom  Thaddeus  Stevens  and  his  followers 
did  not  desire  to  be  represented,  and  this  not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  their  representatives 
were  on  the  floor  of  the  house  ready  to  be 
sworn  in. 

This  having  been  done  a  joint  committee  of 
fifteen  was  appointed,  with  Thaddeus  Stevens  as 
chairman,  to  have  charge  of  the  work  of  recon- 
struction. On  March  2,  1867,  this  committee  re- 
ported a  plan  to  the  house,  providing  for  a  form 
of  government  utterly  foreign  to  our  constitu- 
tion and  having  no  foundation  in  any  legal  in- 
stitution then  existing.  This  act  divided  the 
South,  without  regard  to  state  boundaries,  into 
five  military  districts  and  placed  them  under  the 
command  of  five  general  officers  of  the  army. 
Three  weeks  later  a  supplemental  act  was  passed 


THE   RISE   OF   PLUTOCRACY   TO   POWER         85 

annulling  all  state  governments  then  in  opera- 
tion, enfranchising  the  negroes,  disfranchising 
all  who  had  participated  in  the  war  against  the 
union,  whether  pardoned  or  not,  if  they  had 
previously  held  any  offices  (thus  abolishing  the 
President's  constitutional  power  of  pardon)  and 
granting  to  these  military  officers  absolute  power 
over  life,  liberty  and  property,  with  the  sole  ex- 
ception that  death  sentences  required  the  ap- 
proval of  the  President  before  going  into  ef- 
fect.9^ 

Thus  we  see  that  the  capitalist  class  first  came 
into  power  in  this  country  through  the  bloodiest 
war  of  the  century  and  that  the  present  pluto- 
cratic wing  of  that  class  attained  its  ruling  posi- 
tion through  a  series  of  violent  revolutionary 
measures.  Yet  this  is  the  class  which  is  thrown 
into  a  spasm  of  moral  horror  at  the  suggestion 
of  revolutionary  action  on  the  part  of  its  wage 
slaves. 

^  Wilson,  "  The  Reconstruction  of  the  Southern  States," 
Atlantic  Monthly,  LXXXVII:12-13.  See  also  previous  refer- 
ences  on    Reconstruction. 


86  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


NEGRO  ENFRANCHISEMENT 

One  of  the  fundamental  planks  of  this  recon- 
struction act  was  the  granting  of  the  hallot  to 
the  negro.  For  more  than  two  generations  the 
Republican  party  has  lived  mainly  on  the  glory 
of  two  acts, —  negro  emancipation  and  negro 
enfranchisement.  According  to  the  orthodox 
historian  these  two  blessings  were  conferred 
upon  the  negro  by  the  Republican  party  in  obe- 
dience to  the  mandates  of  its  tender  conscience. 
It  is  rather  rough  on  the  conscience  theory  to 
note  that  the  solid  Republican  states  of  Connecti- 
cut, Ohio,  Kansas  and  Minnesota  in  the  years 
between  1865  and  1867  defeated  by  referendum 
votes  measures  granting  the  suffrage  to  the  ne- 
groes residing  in  those  states.^'  It  is  also  illus- 
trative of  this  moral  conscience  theory  to  note 
that  the  vagrancy  laws  which  were  offered  as 
the  fundamental  reason  for  enactment  have  re- 
cently been  re-enacted  in  the  South  simultane- 
ously with  the  disfranchisement  of  the  negroes 
and  no  protest  has  arisen  from  those  same  tender 

<»  Herbert,    "  Why    the    Solid    South,"    p.    13. 


NEGRO   ENFRANCHISEMENT  87 

consciences.  Would  it  be  impertinent  to  ask  if 
these  events  are  in  any  way  explained  by  the 
fact  that  in  1867  northern  plutocracy  needed  the 
southern  negro  vote  and  that  by  1905  its  ruling 
position  was  so  firm  that  it  could  afford  to  for- 
get his  suffering? 

During  the  years  1868  to  ^'j6  the  northern 
plutocracy  had  very  definite  use  for  the  negro 
vote  in  order  to  make  certain  that  the  small 
capitalist  and  farmer  of  the  South  should  not 
join  with  the  same  classes  in  the  North  and  re- 
capture the  government.  The  control  of  the 
negro  vote  was  partly  secured  through  the 
Freedman's  Bureau  which  was  established,  os- 
tensibly for  the  protection  of  the  negro  but  which 
was  so  manipulated  as  to  make  him  the  political 
slave  of  a  gang  of  officials  who  went  down  from 
the  North  (the  notorious  "  carpet  baggers ") 
and  by  whom  the  negroes  were  trained  to  use 
their  ballots  for  the  benefit  of  a  new  set  of  mas- 
ters as  they  had  used  their  muscles  to  pile  up 
profits  for  their  former  owners.^*^ 

While  this  was  going  on  the  South  was 
plundered  as  though  by  a  horde  of  Goths  and 
Vandals.  I  take  the  following  account  from 
Woodrow  Wilson's  "  A  History  of  the  American 

**  Ihid.,   pp.   17-18.     For  favorable  view  see  Du   Bois,   "  Souls 
of  Black  Folk." 


88  CLASS    STRTGCLRS    IN    AMERICA 

People."  Since  he  is  a  northern  historian,  rec- 
ognized as  the  l)est  authority  on  this  special 
I)erioil,  he  can  not  he  accused  of  bias  against 
those  who  carried  out  reconstruction  : 

"  In  Mississippi,  before  the  work  of  the  carpet  bag- 
gers was  done,  six  hundred  and  forty  thousand  acres 
of  land  had  been  forfeited  for  taxes,  twenty  per  cent 
of  the  total  acreage  of  the  State.  The  state  tax  levy 
for  1871  was  four  times  as  great  as  the  levy  for  1869 
had  been,  that  for  1873  eight  times  as  great ;  that  for 
1874  fourteen  times.  The  impoverished  planters  could 
not  carry  the  intolerable  burden  of  taxes,  and  gave 
their  lands  up  to  be  sold  by  the  sheriff.  There  were 
few  who  could  bu}'.  The  lands  lay  waste  and  neglected 
or  were  parcelled  out  at  nominal  rates  among  the 
negroes.  In  South  Carolina  the  taxes  of  1871  aggre- 
gated $2,000,000  as  against  a  total  of  $400,000  in  i860, 
though  the  taxable  value  of  the  state  was  but  $184,- 
000,000  in  1 87 1  and  had  been  $490,000,000  in  i860. 
There  were  soon  lands  to  be  had  for  the  asking  wher- 
ever the  tax  gatherer  of  the  new  government  had 
pressed  his  claims.  The  assessed  valuation  of  prop- 
erty in  the  city  of  New  Orleans  sank,  during  the  eight 
years  of  carpet  bag  rule,  from  $146,718,790  to  $88,- 
613,930.  Four  years  and  a  half  of  'reconstruction' 
cost  Louisiana  $106,020,337." 

But  the  story  of  the  increase  of  taxation  I?  but 
one  small  side  of  the  case.  State  debts  v^'cre 
increased  to  the  highest  possible  amount.  In  the 
four   years    following    1868   the    debt   of    South 


NEGRO    ENFRANCHISEMENT  89 

Carolina  rose  from  five  to  thirty  million  dollars, 
and  that  of  Louisiana  from  six  to  fifty  million. 
Along  with  this  wholesale  plunder  went  a  prac- 
tical paralysis  of  governmental  institutions.  To- 
wards the  close  of  this  period  the  negroes  began 
to  show  signs  of  disregarding  their  masters  and 
of  utilizing  the  power  of  plunder  which  their 
ballots  gave  them  for  their  own  benefit.  This 
may  account  to  some  extent  for  the  fact  that  no 
effective  opposition  was  ofifered  to  the  work  of 
the  Ku-Klux-Klans,  which  violently  overthrew 
the  reconstruction  governments.  Another  rea- 
son why  less  opposition  was  offered  by  the  plutoc- 
racy is  found  in  the  fact  already  noticed  that  by 
the  middle  of  the  seventies  the  great  capitalists 
were  so  firmly  intrenched  that  their  dislodg- 
ment  was  practically  impossible  and  they  conse- 
quently began  to  be  in  favor  of  "  law  and  order," 
even  though  this  law  and  order  was  secured  by 
a  violent  upsetting  of  governmental  institutions 
in  the  South.  So  it  was  that  as  soon  as  the  Ku- 
Klux-Klan  actually  became  dominant  and  its 
controlling  elements  were  recognized  as  believ- 
ing faithfully  in  the  sacred  god  of  profits,  then 
President  Hayes  withdrew  the  troops  from  the 
South  and  reconstruction  was  completed. 


90  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE  GROWTH  OF  THE  GREAT  IN- 
DUSTRY^o 

By  tliis  time  the  general  features  of  present 
society  had  begun  to  appear.  For  twenty  years 
after  the  Civil  War  these  features  were  still  only 
in  embryo.  These  years  may  be  designated  as 
the  period  of  the  growth  of  the  "  great  in- 
dustry "  in  distinction  from  the  "  little  business  " 
which  preceded  the  war,  and  the  monopolistic 
trusts  w'hich  now  dominate  the  industrial  situa- 
tion. 

The  Civil  War  had  brought  forth  industrial 
units  of  tremendous  size  compared  with  those  of 
a  generation  before.  Yet  these  industries  were 
still  competitive ;  indeed  they  were  even  more 
fiercely  competitive  than  the  smaller  ones  from 
amid  which  they  had  sprung. 

The  field  of  battle  over  which  they  struggled 
had  now  become  national.  This  extension  of  the 
market  was  indeed  one  of  the  most  striking 
phenomena  of  this  period.  Over  30,000  miles  of 
railroad  were  laid  in  the  United  States  between 

i 

<"  Wright,   "  Industrial  Evolution  of  the  U.   S.,"   Chap.  XII. 


GROWTH    OF   THE   GREAT    INDUSTRY  9I 

1865  and  1873.  These  reached  from  the  At- 
lantic to  the  Pacific  and  gridironed  every  por- 
tion of  the  country  with  means  of  quick  efifective 
communication.  This  meant  the  existence  of  a 
national  market  for  all  but  the  most  bulky  and 
perishable  pf  products.  There  were  many  firms 
which  had  grown  up  during  the  Civil  War 
which  were  capable  of  supplying  such  a  national 
market.  In  every  line  of  industry  these  firms 
now  began  a  fierce  struggle  for  survival. 

Three  great  industries  leaped  into  dominant 
positions  during  this  period.  These  were  iron 
and  steel,  coal  and  the  packing  industry.  The 
invention  of  Bessemer  steel  and  the  refrigerator 
car  were  largely  responsible  for  the  rise  of  two 
of  these. 

During  all  this  time  moreover  the  government 
was  absolutely  in  the  hands  of  the  Republican 
party  and  of  the  plutocratic  wing  of  that  party. 
The  Democratic  party  was  too  weak  to  offer 
even  effective  criticism,  to  say  nothing  of  oppo- 
sition, consequently  the  government  was  used 
for  the  benefit  of  the  ruling  class  in  a  most 
shameless  manner.  The  "  Whiskey  Ring  "  and 
Credit  Mobilier  were  but  incidents,  not  by  any 
means  the  worst  among  a  host  of  notorious  and 
barefaced  steals  on  a  national  scale  which  took 
place  at  this  time. 


92  CLASS    STRL'GGLF.S    IN    AMERICA' 

Rut  such  petty  direct  grafting  is  never  the 
fundamental  purpose  of  capitahstic  control  of 
government.  It  is  rather  to  use  the  government 
for  the  direct  furtherance  of  the  interests  of  the 
capitalist  class  as  such.  The  tariff  was  there- 
fore raised  for  purposes  of  protection  even  above 
the  point  where  the  exigencies  of  war  taxation 
had  placed  it.  To  extend  the  national  market 
by  the  great  system  of  railroads  described  above, 
an  empire  of  land  larger  by  five  times  than  the 
entire  state  of  Ohio  was  presented  to  the  men 
who  owned  the  stock  in  these  proposed  lines.^^ 
To  make  these  railroads  even  more  profitable  and 
to  still  further  extend  the  market,  every  effort 
was  made  to  hasten  the  settlement  of  the  western 
states. 

All  this  expansion,  however  much  of  profit 
it  brought  to  the  large  capitalists,  could  not 
avoid  raising  up  a  new  army  of  small  middle 
class  property  owners  and  these  soon  began  to 
show  signs  of  class-conscious  solidarity,  and  to 
express  this  on  the  political  field.  During  the 
years  immediately  following  the  Civil  War  the 
small  capitalist  interests  attempted  to  crystallize 
around  Andrew  Johnson,  who  was  in  the  highest 
degree  representative  of  their  class  interest.  Al- 
though it  is  now  universally  agreed  that  he  was 

•*  Donaldson,  "  The  Public  Domain,"  pp.  262,  et  seq. 


GROWTH    OF   THE   GREAT    INDUSTRY  93 

carrying-  out  President  Lincoln's  plan  for  recon- 
struction, though  to  be  sure  with  none  of  Lin- 
coln's tact  and  ability,  yet  the  corporate  control 
of  the  press  and  the  other  organs  of  public  opin- 
ion succeeded  in  arousing  indignation  against 
him  until  he  came  to  be  generally  considered  as 
a  traitor. 

This  movement  reached  its  height  in  the  at- 
tempt to  remove  him  by  impeachment.  There  is 
probably  not  a  constitutional  lawyer  to-day  who 
will  claim  that  the  process  had  the  slightest  justi- 
fication on  constitutional  grounds.  His  oppo- 
nents did,  however,  succeed  in  so  completely  dis- 
gracing him  in  the  public  mind  that  his  follow- 
ing disintegrated.  By  1872  the  interests  which 
he  represented  had  begun  once  more  to  crystallize 
and  in  that  year  the  Horace  Greeley  ticket  was 
thoroughly  representative  of  the  little  capitalistic 
interests,  but  the  disfranchisement  of  the  South 
enabled  the  plutocracy  to  re-elect  Grant  and 
maintain  their  domination. 


94  CLASS    STKUGGLliS    IN    AMERICA 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  LABOR  MOVEMENT 

The  Civil  War  marked  the  close  of  struggles 
between  anything  like  equal  divisions  of  the 
exploiting  class  in  the  United  States.  While  for 
the  next  generation  or  two  there  were  spasmodic 
attempts  on  the  part  of  different  divisions  of  the 
exploiters  to  grasp  the  reins,  yet  the  position 
of  the  capitalistic  class  as  a  whole  was  never 
threatened.  Indeed  we  might  go  further  and 
say  that  never  since  the  days  of  Reconstruction 
was  the  plutocratic  wing  of  that  class  in  any 
serious  danger  of  losing  its  dominant  position. 

But  now  a  new  force  appears  upon  the  scene. 
Chattel  slavery  had  disappeared  and  wage 
slavery  was  here.  A  national  market  began  to 
exist,  not  only  for  iron  and  steel  and  pork,  but 
for  labor  power,  that  strange  peculiarly  capital- 
istic commodity,  whose  very  existence  is  so  preg- 
nant with  revolutionary  power.  It  was  no 
longer  necessary  to  invest  several  thousand  dol- 
lars of  capital  in  the  bodies  of  laborers  in  order 
to  establish  a  great  industry.  The  buyer  of  la- 
bor power  did  not  need  to  visit  a  slave  auction. 


RISE   OF   THE   LABOR    MOVEMENT  95 

or  employ  skilled  buyers  to  search  the  markets 
of  the  slave  breeding  states  in  order  to  secure 
the  muscle  and  brain  he  needed  in  the  production 
of  profits.  If  a  thousand  or  five  thousand,  or  a 
hundred  thousand  men  were  wanted  to  build 
and  operate  a  trans-continental  railroad,  found  a 
packing  industry,  build  a  city,  or  dig  a  canal,  it 
was  only  necessary  to  let  the  fact  be  known 
through  the  columns  of  the  daily  press  and  the 
possessors  of  this  new  labor  power  commodity 
hastened  to  the  designated  spot  over  the  high- 
ways or  clinging  to  the  brake  bars  of  freight 
trains,  carrying  with  them  the  strength  of  their 
muscles  and  the  skill  of  their  brains.  When 
they  arrived  at  the  spot  where  they  were  wanted 
they  found  no  long  line  of  masters  to  bid  for 
their  bodies,  but  on  the  other  hand  the  workers 
themselves  engaged  in  a  sort  of  "  Dutch  auction  " 
where  the  lowest  bidder  took  the  job. 

Such  a  condition  bringing  thousands  of  men 
together  to  work  for  the  same  master  was  sure 
to  arouse  within  the  ranks  of  the  workers  a  feel- 
ing of  common  interest,  the  germs  of  class  con- 
sciousness. This  feeling  was  to  grow  and  de- 
velop until  a  new  and  more  far  reaching  class 
struggle  than  any  the  world  had  ever  known 
before  was  to  take  place  on  this  continent. 

In  the  beginning  this  class  consciousness  ex- 


96  CLASS    STUICGLES    IN    AMKRICA 

pressed  itself  only  in  the  form  of  organizations 
to  secure  a  little  higher  i)ricc  for  the  labor  power 
to  be  sold.  So  it  was  that  the  four  years  im- 
mediately following  the  Civil  War  were  years 
of  the  beginning  of  the  present  labor  unions.^® 
Thousands  of  such  organizations  were  formed  in 
every  part  of  the  country  and  these  finally  joined 
together  in  1866  in  the  National  Labor  Union. 
This  organization  grew  in  membership  and  in- 
fluence until  in  1869  it  reported  a  membership 
of  168,000.  Aside  from  a  few  rather  small 
strikes  its  activity  was  largely  devoted  to  agita- 
tion for  a  national  eight  hour  day.  In  this  it 
was  assisted  by  many  humanitarians  and  reform- 
ers. As  a  result  Congress  passed  a  law  in  1867 
providing  for  the  eight  hour  day  for  employes  of 
the  national  government.  This  was  the  first  and 
almost  the  last  important  gain  ever  made  by  the 
labor  movement  through  the  lobbying  method 
and  was  only  possible  because  of  the  confusion 
of  class  interests  which  still  prevailed. 

In  1870  the  National  Labor  Union  became  a 
political  party  with  a  platform  demanding  al- 
most everything  from  "  the  maintenance  of  a 
protective  tariff  as  long  as  it  should  be  neces- 

»°  McNeil,  "The  Labor  Movement,"  p.  128;  Ely,  "Labor 
Movement  in  America,"  p.  61 ;  Report  of  the  Industrial  Com- 
mission, XVII :1;  Hillquit,  "History  of  Socialism  in  the  U.  S.," 
pp.  183-184. 


RISE   OF    THE    LABOR    MOVEMENT  97 

sary  "  to  "  the  disenthrallment  of  labor  "  and  po- 
litical application  of  the  golden  rule.  Such  a 
party  could  not  have  any  long  life  and  indeed  it 
died  almost  as  soon  as  born. 


98  CLASS    STULGGLIiS    IN    AMERICA 


THE  AMERICAN  RENAISSANCE 

About  the  time  that  America  was  discovered, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  the  capitalist  class 
gained  control  in  Europe.  During  the  next  cen- 
tury or  two,  art,  literature  and  music  was  "  cap- 
italized." This  period,  commonly  known  as  the 
Renaissance,  was,  we  will  not  say,  duplicated, 
but  rather  burlesqued  by  the  capitalist  class  of 
America.  It  was  to  its  European  counterpart, 
what  the  revolution  of  '48  was  to  the  great 
French  revolution,  a  comparison  which  Marx 
has  so  excellently  developed  in  his  Eighteenth 
Brumaire.  In  both  cases  it  marked  the  reduc- 
tion of  all  forms  of  art  to  the  commodity  basis. 
In  America  it  was  the  time  when  the  American 
millionaire  first  became  the  laughing  stock  of  the 
world,  the  synonym  for  the  parvenu  and  the  up- 
start. It  was  the  age  in  which  sculpture  found 
expression  in  bronze  dogs  on  millionaires'  lawns, 
when  architecture  expressed  itself  in  the  "  Queen 
Anne  fronts  and  Mary  Ann  backs  "  of  the  homes 
of  the  kings  of  pork  and  iron.  It  was  the  age 
when  Mary  Jane  Holmes  and  the  "  Duchess  " 


THE   AMERICAN    RENAISSANCE  99 

ruled  in  literature,  while  the  American  million- 
aire's contribution  to  the  pictorial  art  of  the 
world  was  the  invention  and  popularization  of 
the  chromo. 


100  CLASS   STRUGGLES   IN   AMERICA 


PANIC  OF  1873 

In  less  than  ten  years  after  the  Civil  War  the 
marvelous  new  tools  that  had  been  invented  and 
the  powers  of  nature  that  had  been  conquered 
showed  themselves  capable  of  producing  far 
more  than  either  their  owners  could  waste  or 
their  users,  with  their  wage  slave  remuneration, 
could  buy,  and  industries  broke  down  in  the  first 
really  great  capitalistic  crisis  of  1873.  As  yet 
the  large  capitalists  had  not  reached  a  size  suffi- 
cient to  elevate  them  above  the  catastrophies  of 
their  industrial  system,  so  all  went  down  to- 
gether in  a  common  smash. 

When  the  financial  storm  had  passed  the  in- 
dustrial face  of  society  was  transformed ;  a  new 
method  of  organization  had  entered  industry,  as 
potent  both  as  a  saver  of  labor  and  a  hastener  of 
the  process  of  production,  as  the  machine  in  the 
mechanical  world.  This  was  the  corporation, 
which  had  hitherto  been  almost  entirely  confined 
to  the  fields  of  transportation  and  banking,  but 
which  now  began  to  be  utilized  in  all  fields  of 
industry.     The    corporation    brings    with    it,    as 


PANIC   OF    1873  lOI 

does  every  new  invention  in  the  industrial  field, 
important  social  changes.  It  marks  the  disap- 
pearance of  the  capitalist  as  an  active  partici- 
pant in  the  productive  process.  He  no  longer 
directs  the  process  in  the  shop  or  in  any  way  ful- 
fills a  function  as  a  captain  of  industry.  He 
has  found,  in  the  corporation,  a  new  machine,  a 
legal  creation,  having  no  body  to  scourge,  no 
soul  to  damn,  no  life  to  lose.  This  machine,  like 
its  mechanical  counterpart,  he  does  not  himself 
operate,  but  simply  retains  the  ownership. 
Henceforth  the  manager  and  director  of  in- 
dustry, like  the  man  who  handles  shovel,  ham- 
mer, loom  or  lever,  is  a  wage  slave,  forced  to 
sell  himself  to  the  owner  of  this  new  industrial 
and  financial  tool.  The  capitalist  henceforth  be- 
comes purely  a  parasitic  owner,  who  may  be  an 
idiot,  an  infant,  an  insane  person,  a  ward  of  the 
court,  but  who,  while  the  law  protects  his  own- 
ership of  corporation  shares,  can  still  levy  a  tax 
upon  every  man  working  either  with  hand  or 
with  brain. 


102  CLASS   STRUGGLES   IN    AMERICA 


THE  STRIKE  OF  1877  ^^^ 

The  first  effect  of  the  panic,  as  always,  was 
felt  in  the  decline  of  wages.  The  few  small  la- 
bor unions  that  had  existed  were  soon  swept 
away.  Their  members  joined  the  army  of  un- 
employed which  for  the  first  time  appeared  in 
great  numbers  in  the  streets  of  American  cities. 
Those  who  remained  at  work  found  that  this 
army  standing  idle  at  the  shop  gates  was  a 
more  powerful  weapon  with  which  to  crush  labor 
than  any  miltary  forces  that  their  masters  might 
have  gathered  to  confront  them. 

Month  by  month  the  pittance  paid  for  labor 
power  grew  smaller  and  smaller  until  when  in 
1876  the  centennial  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence was  celebrated,  it  saw  the  working 
class  of  America  in  a  condition  of  servitude  far 
more  pitiable  than  that  ever  endured  by  the  col- 

it* "  Report  of  Committee  on  R.  R.  Riots,"  Pa.  State  Doc's, 
1878;  Headley,  "Pen  and  Pencil  Sketches  of  the  Great  Riots  ; 
Dacus,  "Annals  of  the  Great  Strikes";  Scott,  "The  Recent 
Strikes,"  in  N.  Am.  Rev.,  CXX V  :351 ;  McNeil,  "  The  Labor 
Movement,"  p.  351;  Adams  and  Sumner,  "The  Labor  Prob- 
lem," pp. 


THE    STRIKE   OF    1877  IO3 

onists  beneath  the  tyranny  of  King  George.  As 
business  began  to  revive  the  masters  saw  only 
the  possibiHty  of  a  greater  increase  of  profits  and 
continued  to  cut  wages.  Soon  an  attitude  of 
desperate,  bhnd  revolt  began  to  prevail  among 
the  workers.  This  reached  its  climax  when  Tom 
Scott,  the  President  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road, announced  a  ten  per  cent  horizontal  cut  in 
the  already  starvation  wages  of  the  employes  of 
that  company.  As  other  railroads  announced 
their  intention  of  making  a  similar  cut  the  de- 
mand for  a  strike  spread  over  the  entire  coun- 
try. Yet  there  was  no  organization  able  to  call 
a  strike ;  there  was  no  method  by  which  to  ex- 
press any  general  revolt.  So  it  was  that  the  day 
for  the  reduction  came  and  went  and  found  the 
workers  apparently  bending  in  resignation  be- 
neath this  final  blow. 

But  on  the  i6th  of  July,  1877,  a  railroad  train 
rolled  into  Martinsburg,  W.  Va.,  and  as  it 
stopped  the  train  crew  stepped  from  their  places 
announcing  that  as  for  them  they  had  decided  it 
were  better  to  starve  in  idleness  than  add  to 
hunger  and  privation  the  added  pain  of  labor. 
As  they  walked  out  through  the  yards  they  were 
joined  by  the  other  workers  and  within  three 
days  the  strike  had  spread  over  the  entire  sys- 
tem,   had    reached    Pittsburg,    New    York,    and 


I04  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

Philadelphia,  and  liad  paral\zcil  the  transporta- 
tion system  of  the  East.  A  few  days  later  the 
wave  of  revolt  swept  over  the  AUeghenies,  and 
extended  into  other  branches  of  industry  until 
something  very  like  a  general  strike  prevailed 
throughout  the  United  States.  Everywhere  the 
mills,  mines,  factories  and  railroads  stood  still. 

Then  it  was  that  the  workers  were  forced  to 
realize  for  the  first  time  why  the  Civil  War  had 
been  fought  and  for  what  purposes  their  masters 
desired  the  powers  of  government.  Then  for 
the  first  time  in  the  streets  of  American  cities 
was  heard  the  crack  of  the  militia  rifle  in  civil 
war  between  capital  and  labor.  In  Pittsburg 
and  Baltimore  the  battle  was  for  some  time  by 
no  means  one  sided.  The  militia  were  often 
overcome  and  the  workers  gained  momentary 
mastery.  But  the  laborers  had  no  plan  of  action, 
nor  any  coherent  idea  of  what  to  do  and  conse- 
quently were  unable  to  use  their  victory  when 
gained.  Soon  new  reinforcements  were  brought 
up  by  the  capitalists  an  I  the  strike  went  down 
in  bloody  defeat.  This  struggle,  however, 
showed  the  need  of  organization.  Everywhere 
it  was  felt  that  had  the  workers  been  united, 
had  they  acted  with  intelligence,  they  might  eas- 
ily have  won.  We  know  to-day  that  the  very 
unripeness  which  kept  them  unorganized  would 


THE   STRIKE   OF    1 8/7  IO5 

also  have  prevented  any  effective  victory,  and 
that  success  of  the  workers  at  this  time  might 
indeed  well  have  proved  an  obstacle  to  prog- 
ress. How  well  they  learned  their  lesson  of  the 
need  of  organization  is  shown  by  the  events  of 
the  next  few  years. 


I06  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE  RISE  OF  THE  KNIGHTS  OF  LABOR 

The  meteoric  career  of  this  organization  has 
had  few.  if  any  parallels  in  the  history  of  the 
labor  movement  of  the  world.  For  the  first  ten 
years  after  its  founding  in  1869  it  barely  ex- 
isted, shrouding  its  proceedings  in  deepest  se- 
crecy, and  concealing  even  its  name  from  all  out- 
siders. In  the  later  years  of  this  decade,  with 
the  increased  growth  of  membership,  this  secrecy 
began  to  be  dropped.  In  iSSq,  however,  the 
membership  had  only  reached  one  hundred  thou- 
sand, but  with  the  up-shoot  of  industry  which 
was  at  its  height  during  that  and  the  following 
year,  preceding  the  depression  of  1887  and  '88, 
and  assisted  by  the  great  eight  hour  agitation 
of  those  years,  the  membership  rose  to  nearly 
700,000,  during  the  single  year  1886. 

It  was  the  eight  hour  agitation  which  was 
primarily  responsible  for  this  movement.  There 
had  grown  "ujr  something  almost  like  an  eight 
hour  religion  which  had  set  its  Millennial  Dawn 
for  -May  ist,  1886.  This  movement  reached  a 
height   wdiich   is  hard   to   understand   by   those 


RISE   OF   THE    KNIGHTS   OF   LABOR  IO7 

whose  memory  does  not  reach  back  to  that  time. 
PubHc  meetings,  propaganda  pamphlets,  news- 
paper and  magazine  articles  all  were  preaching 
the  necessity  of  a  great  general  uprising  of  la- 
bor in  support  of  the  demand  for  shorter  hours. 
To  be  sure  the  K.  of  L.  officially  disavowed  any 
intention  of  lending  support,  but  in  spite  of  itself 
it  was  swept  into  the  general  movement.  Strikes 
took  place  all  over  the  country.  Business  was 
well  nigh  suspended,  and  once  more,  as  in  1877, 
the  country  took  on  much  the  aspect  of  a  general 
strike.  In  the  midst  of  this  excitement  some 
fool,  fanatic,  or  police  spy,  hurled  a  bomb  on 
Haymarket  Square  in  Chicago.  The  bourgeois 
mind,  which  had  been  thrown  into  something 
like  a  panic  by  the  prospect  of  even  the  trifling 
dimunition  in  their  profits  which  the  eight  hour 
movement  portended,  saw  its  opportunity.  All 
the  forces  of  public  opinion,  a  prostituted  press 
and  a  bought  judiciary  were  hurled  against  the 
remnants  of  the  eight  hour  movement,  and  it 
died  a  miserable  death  on  the  scaffold  of  Cook 
County  Jail. 

The  industrial  boom,  the  eight  hour  craze  and 
the  Knights  of  Labor  went  down  together. 
Moreover  the  organization  had  itself  become 
the  prey  of  that  most  destructive  of  all  beasts 
of  preyj  the  labor  fakir. 


lo8  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

The  Richmond  convention  of  "86  appropriated 
nearly  half  a  million  of  dollars  out  of  the  com- 
mon treasury.  It  raised  the  salary  of  all  the 
officers  and  in  fact  tossed  out  the  treasury  sur- 
plus to  the  crowd  of  hungry  wolves  that  were 
crying  for  plunder.  From  this  time  on  the 
story  of  the  Knights  is  but  a  story  of  sickness 
and  death.  Their  demise  was  hastened  by  the 
fierce  fight  that  was  being  made  upon  them  by 
a  new  organization  that  had  just  arisen  with  the 
grandiloquent  name  of  "  Federation  of  Organ- 
ized Trades  and  Labor  Unions  of  the  United 
States  and  Canada  "  and  which  we  now  know  as 
"  The  American  Federation  of  Labor."  This  or- 
ganization had  had  a  moribund  existence  since 
iSSi.  While  we  are  told  by  the  official  histories 
of  the  organization  that  "  107  delegates  repre- 
senting nearly  one-fourth  of  a  million  men  "  met 
at  Pittsburg  in  that  year  to  form  this  organiza- 
tion, the  truth  is,  that  all  but  43  of  these  dele- 
gates lived  at  Pittsburg,  and  that  only  three  in- 
ternational bodies  were  represented ;  while  the 
most  liberal  estimate  based  on  the  financial  re- 
ceipts, which  amount  to  $445.31  during  the  first 
year  of  its  existence,  show  that  the  actual  mem- 
bership was  somewhere  between  25,000  and  35,- 
000  members.  There  was  very  little  growth  in 
the  organization  until  1887  when  the  K.  of  L. 


RISE    OF    THE    KNIGHTS    OF    LABOR  IO9 

having  started  downward,  the  new  organization 
rose  upon  the  ruins.  In  this  year  its  creden- 
tial committee  reports  a  membership  of  600,000, 
but  the  financial  committee  reports  dues  from 
only  150,000.  The  real  membership  was  some- 
thing above  the  latter  figure,  but  far  below  the 
former.  Since  then  it  has  steadily  grown  up 
to  the  present  time  when  the  unions  affiliated 
with  it  have  a  membership  of  something  like  one 
million  and  a  half,  or  two  million. 


no  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE  AGRARIAN  REVOLT 

While  the  forces  of  labor  were  being  thus 
drawn  closer  together  on  the  economic  field  and 
the  lines  were  growing  sharper  in  the  great  bat- 
tle between  exploiter  and  exploited,  a  last  des- 
perate attempt  was  made  by  the  class  of  small 
farmers  to  enter  the  political  arena.  Following 
the  panic  of  iSyj  ^'e  have  seen  that  the  -Green- 
back movement  arose,  representing  to  some  de- 
gree tHe  farming"  and  debtor  classl  Another 
nTOVCTneilT  whicTT'appeared  simultaneously  with 
this  and  which  was  pregnant  with  tremendous 
possibilities  was  the  "  Patrons  of  Husbandry," 
commonly  known  as  the  "  Grange. "^*^^  This  or- 
ganization maintained  a  bare  existence  from  its 
nominal  formation  in  1868  until  the  time  of  the 
panic  of  1873,  when  in  that  single  year  over 
eight  thousand  new  organizations  were  founded 
to  be  followed  by  11,941  in  1874,  giving  the 
Grange  of  that  year  a  membership  of  between 
700,000  and  800,000,  with  an  annual  income  of 

101  pierson,    "  The    Rise   and   Fall   of   the   Granger   Movement," 
Pop.    Sci.   Monthly,    Dec,   1887. 


THE   AGRARIAN    REVOLT  III 

almost  $350,000.00.  This  movement  soon 
found  its  political  expression  in  parties  of  vari- 
ous names  which  succeeded  in  capturing  several 
states  and  in  enacting  legislation  restricting  rail- 
road rates,  and  otherwise  voicing  the  demands 
nf  the  farmer  and  small^cajMtalist  class.  This 
legislation,  howeverTbrought  forth_2iacticalIy 
no  results,  and  was  soon  repealed. 

'|pn    ypur<i    laTpr    annthpr    farmer' or g-anization. 


the  Alliance,  hadarisen  to  a  strength  almost 
equal  to  that  of  the  Grange.j^  This  movement 
ended  in  the  formadon  of~the  Populist  party, 
wfiose  campaign  maybe  looked  upon  ^^the  last 
great  stand  of  the  frontier.  Holding  the  same 
principles  that  we  have  seen  tTie  debtor  class  on 
the  border  of  advancing  society;  hoI^T  since  The 
days~or~SIiavs'  rebellion,— -_because  of  the  fact 
that_the  last  migration  that~^lle3~up  tTTelgreat 
plains  was  larger  than  any  other  —  it  was 
enabled  to  obtain  a  strength  such  as  was  given 
to  no  previous  stand  of  _the  debtor  class  on 
AmgriVan  soil  JnTSog^jheirvote  for  President 
reached  the  high  water  markoT~r;550;2|:24.^<'3 

lo^  Morgan,   "  History  of  the  Alliance." 

103  pfeffer,  "  The  Rise  and  Fall  of  Populism  " ;  McVey,  "  The 
Populist  Movement,"  Am.  Economic  Studies,  Aug.,  1896;  Si- 
mons,  "  The  American  Farmer,"  pp.  141—150. 


112  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE   LITTLE   CAPITALISTS'   FINAL 
FIGHT 

The  Populist  movement  was  followed  by  and 
became  a  part  of  another  movement  represenV 
ing  a  class  now  doomed  to  disappear  as  a  de- 
cisive factor  in  American  politics,  but  which  for 
a  generation  had  been  struggling  for  the  mas- 
tery. This  ..wastlTe  little  competitive  employing 
class  together  with  the  small  shop  keeper  and 
tarmen  THe  tremendous  conceniraiion  "of  in- 
dustry  whicli  had  taken  place  since  1890  had 
crowded  this  class^to  the  yerge  of  desperation. 

The  panic  of  1893  was  almost  exclusively  a 
panicT  of"TlTe"smari  capitaTisl:~class7~  In  1873  the 
average  capitalization  of  the  firms  failing  was 
$44,000.00.  Twenty  years  later  with  the  aver- 
age  inclustrial  tinit~  probably  _diree  iimes~iis  large, 
the  average  capitalization  of  the  firms  failing 
during  the  panic  of  that  year  was  less  than  $25,- 
000.00,  while  during  the  wTioTe  five  years"  from 
1893  to  '97  there  were  only  86  failures  involv- 
ing over  $500,000.00  capital. 

Theje   dfisperate-Jittle  capitalists,   allied   with 


LITTLE    capitalists'    FINAL   FIGHT  II 3 

the  railroad  and  mortgage  ridden  farmers  of  the 
Grange  and  Alhance,  and  financed  to  some  de- 
gree by~tHe~silver  mine  owners,  ralHed  aromid 
the  flag  of  free  coinage  of  silver  under  Bryan 
in  the  campaigns  of  '96  and  JQOO.  We  have  in 
this  campaign  a  confused  combination  "of  the 
cnes  of  v»^oe  of  all  These  various  classes.  Free 
coinage  of  silver  was  supposed  to  meet  the  pio- 
n^er^aiid  dehtor  class  demand  for  depreciation  of 
currency,  while  at  the  same  time  it  brought  in 
promrse~of  rich  returns  to  the  silver  mine  owner. 
The  campaigii  against  trusts  was  expected  to 
carry  a  healing  balm  to  the  little  exploiters  of 
labor  who  were  being  crushed  out  by  the  giant 
trusts. 


114  CLASS    STKLGGLIlS    IN    AMERICA 


LATER    STAGES    IN    CONCENTRATION. 

But  the  powers  of  plutocracy  had  grown  too 
great  to  be  endangered  by  any  class  standing 
upon  the  foundation  of  private  property,  exploi- 
tation and  the  wage  system.  During  the  last 
half  century  the  process  of  eliminating  the  small 
capitalist  had  gone  steadily  onward.  This  w^s 
shown  not  alone  in  the  fact  that  the  size  of  the 
average  unit  of  industry  had  increased.  This 
might  have  indicated  simply  that  great  businesses 
were  growing  up  along  side  the  smaller  ones. 
But  a  table  published  in  the  volume  on  "  Manu- 
factures "  of  the  United  States  census  of  1900 
show'S  that  this  movement  really  meant  the  swal- 
low-ing  of  the  less  by  the  greater.  This  table, 
showing  the  number  of  establishments  in  the 
thirteen  leading  industries  in  the  United  States 
by  decades  between  1850  and  1900  is  eloquent 
with  the  story  of  the  disappearing  middle  class : 

NUMBER   OF    ESTABLISHMENTS. 

1850  1860  1870  1880  1890  1900 

Agricultural  Implements..  1333  2116  2076  1943  910  715 

Carpets  and  Rugs 116  213  215  195  173  133 

Cotton  Goods  1094  1091  956  1005  905  1055 


LATER    STAGES    IN    CONCENTRATION  II 5 

Glass  -94  112  201  211  294  355 

Hosiery  and  Knit  Goods..  85  197  848  359  796  921 

Iron  and  Steel  468  543  726  699  699  668 

Leather  6686  5188  7569  2628  1787  1306 

Paper  and  Wood  Pulp...  443  555  677  742  649  763 

Shipbuilding  953  675  694  2188  1006  1116 

Silk  and  Silk  Goods 67  139  86  383  472  483 

Slaughter'g  &  M't.  P'kg.  185  259  768  872  1367  1134 

Woolen  Goods  1559  1260  2891  1990  1311  1035 

Malt  Liquors  431  1269  1973  2191  1248  1509 

Totals  13514  13616  19349  18405  11617  11193 

He  who  can  read  the  language  of  figures  will 
find  in  this  table  much  of  the  industrial,  and 
therefore  the  social  and  political,  history  of  the 
last  half  century  of  the  United  States.  He  will 
note  that  by  1870  sufficient  plants  were  in  exist- 
ence to  supply  the  industrial  needs  of  a  market 
restricted  by  the  wage  system.  Indeed  it  ap- 
pears that  there  was  a  surplus  of  such  plants, 
since  the  thirty  years  that  have  followed,  and 
which  have  seen  our  population  increase  nearly 
fifty  per  cent,  and  the  territory  occupied  well 
nigh  double,  as  the  western  states  have  been 
filled  up  and  the  older  states  more  thoroughly 
exploited,  have  seen  less  and  less  plants  required 
in  almost  every  great  industry.  This  means  that 
for  a  generation  the  opportunity  to  pass  from 
the  working  class  to  the  capitalist  class  has  prac- 
tically disappeared,  and  that  the  movement  has, 
on  the  contrary,  been  proceeding  in  the  other 


ii6 


CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


direction  and  that  thousands  of  tlie  smaller  cap- 
itahsts  have"  been  forced  into  the  ranks  of  the 
workers. 

This  table,  after  all,  presents  but  a  small  por- 
tion of  the  truth.  Methods  of  modern  high 
finance, —  the  organization  of  "  purchasing  com- 
panies," the  control  of  "  dominating  industries  " 
have  really  centralized  property  far  beyond  the 
point  show^n  by  these  figures,  A  new  force  has 
entered  into  Amencan^jndustries_ia  ^fHe  organ- 
ization  of  the  trust  which  marks  the  disappear- 
ance  of  competition  as Jliejniling^ industrial-force 
and  thereby  pomtsThe  passing  of  the  so-called 

far  has  this  process  of 


competitive  systeniT 
trustification  gone  that  a  careful  examination_of 
th^  figures  presented  by  John  Mood>'  in  his  work 
Thr''-^rntJf^AboultyiTe-Tril^^^  de- 

velopffient  sincethat  was  written  would  seem 
to*make_LL evi dent^ttiat'at least  thirty  billion's  of 
dollars  of  the  wealth  of  America  have  passed^but 
^  the^ompetitive  systetTr4Trto'"TlTe'^ontror"6f  a 
score  or  more  of  individuatST  ' 

Some  ideaortHe~power  wielded  by  this  bod}" 
of  men  is  gained  when  we  remember  that  at 
the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  the  total  assessed 
value  of  the  United  States  was  but  eighteen 
billion  dollars.  Had  this  handful  of  men  now 
controlling   the    wealth   of    America   been    alive 


LATER    STAGES    IN    CONCENTRATION  11/ 

and  possessing  the  same  financial  resources 
which  they  now  control  they  could  have  bought 
all  that  lies  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific, 
between  the  Canadian  border  and  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico, —  all  the  farms,  and  all  the  cities,  all 
the  churches,  schools,  and  universities,  all  the 
southern  plantations  and  all  the  chattel  slaves 
upon  them ;  and  when  this  was  done  they  would 
still  have  had  sufficient  capital  to  have  gone  to 
Europe  and  purchased  a  half  dozen  European 
monarchies  as  toys  for  their  children. 
JHhis  overwhelmingly  powerful  plutocracy  now 
Hrmn'nf^teq  fvpry  field — nf  snrifil — control.  The 
United  States  government  has  long  ago  become, 
in  the  words  of  The  Communist  Manifesto,  a 
"  committee  for  managing  the  common  affairs  of 
the  whole  bourgeoisie."  The  United  States  Sen- 
ate is  little  more  than  a  directorate  of  consoli- 
dated capital.  The  press,  platform  and  uni- 
versity are  largely  but  tools  to  formulate  and 
maintain  the  public  opinion  essential  to  the  per- 
manence of  this  plutocracy. 


Il8  CLASS   STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 


THE  LAST  CLASS  STRUGGLE 

Against  this  tremendous  power  but  one  force 
is  capable  of  maintaining  an  effective  figbt.  This 
force  is,  Hke  phitocracy,  the  creation  of  the  great 
industrial  age  of  to-day.  This  is  the  working 
class.  We  have  seen  them  slowly  gathering 
strength,  solidarity  and  intelligence,  blindly 
groping  for  better  methods  of  organization,  go- 
ing down  to  apparently  hopeless  defeats  before 
militia  rifles  and  plutocratically  dominated  judi- 
ciaries, but  like  the  fabled  giant  Anteas  they  are 
crushed  to  earth  only  to  receive  new  strength 
and  new  energy  for  further  fighting.  Steadily 
the  idea  has  grown  among  them  that  their  fight 
must  be  transferred  from  the  brute  test  of  physi- 
cal and  financial  strength  on  the  economic  field, 
to  the  political  arena.  Here  the  evolution  of  in- 
dustry, the  development  of  events  that  cast  their 
shadows  before  have  written  a  platform  upon 
which  the  working  class  must  stand.  That  plat- 
form sees  in_the_consolidatiari  nf  n:a^nershjfi.  in 
the  organization  of  indii£trieSj_in_Jh£_jtriists,  in 
the  concentration  of   wealth   with  its  merciless 


THE  LAST  CLASS  STRUGGLE        II9 

inevitable  onward  movement,  but  a  preparation 
for  collective  owner^Fiip^and  control.  It  sees~in 
the  ever  recurring  panics^tHe  death  pangs  oT  an 
old_^ociety,  and  in  the  ever  growing  solidarity 
of  labor  and^  capital  with  strikes,  boycotts7"lock 
outs,  and  iiy  unctions^  but_the  birth  pangs  of  a 
new  society  in  which  for  the  first  tTme^in~thB 
worlds J^fljKmSirKIsIialLjcule^  shall  be 

workers,  and  thereby  rulership  and  slavery  shall 
pass  from  off  the  earth. 

Farmers  learning  at  last  the  lesson  of  their 
helpfessness  and  "isolation,  together_jmth,Jhe  in- 
adequacy of  their  previous  demands,  are  joining 
han^s  with  the  wage^orkers  where  they  find 
the  strength  tTiat  means  victory  for  both ;  the 
program  that  means  freedom  lor  all. 

In  ^tEis~great  struggle  we  are  now  engaged 
there  can  be  but  one  outcome.  Previous  class 
struggles  in  America  have  ever  been  waged  in 
the  interest  of  a  minority,  but  that  minority  in 
the  Revolution,  in  the  formation  of  the  Consti- 
tution, in  the  Civil  War,  in  Reconstruction,  al- 
ways represented  the  forces  of  social  progress. 
Therefore  it  was  compact,  consolidated  and  was 
able  to  secure  the  support  of  the  workers  for 
their  fighting.  To-day  it  is  the  working  class 
which  represents  social  progress,  and  which  em- 
braces all  that  is  essential  within  our  industrial 


120  CLASS    STRUGGLES    IN    AMERICA 

process.  Moreover  it  is  they  who  have  done  the 
fighting  in  all  other  wars,  and  who  must  now 
fight  for  themselves ;  and  whereas  in  previous 
struggles  the  class  that  represented  social  prog- 
ress was  a  minority  depending  upon  the  worker 
for  support  in  its  battle,  the  working  class  is 
to-day  in  an  overwhelming  majority  and  has  but 
to  make  plain  the  facts  of  history  to  its  member- 
ship to  be  assured  of  victory. 


A 

CATALOGUE 

OF 

BOOKS 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM 
MODERN   SCIENCE,  ETC. 


STANDARD   SOCIALIST   SERIES. 

This  series  of  books,  the  first  volumes  of  which 
were  issued  in  1901^  contains  some  of  the  most 
important  works  by  the  ablest  socialist  writers  of 
Europe  and  America.  The  size  of  page  is  6%  by 
414  inches,  making  a  convenient  shape  either  for 
the  pocket  or  the  library  shelf.  The  books  are  sub- 
stantially bound  in  cloth,  stamped  witli  a  uniform 
design,  and  are  mechanically  equal  to  many  of  the 
books  sold  by  other  publishers  at  a  dollar  a  copy. 

1.  Karl     Marx:      Biographical     Memoirs.      By 

Wilhelm  Liebknecht,  translated  by  Ernest 
Untermann.    Cloth,  50  cents'. 

This  personal  biography  of  Marx,  by  an  intimate 
friend  who  was  himself  one  of  the  foremost  socialists 
of  Germany,  gives  a  new  insight  into  the  beginnings 
of  socialism.  Moreover,  it  is  a  charming  book,  as 
Interesting  as  a  novel,  and  will  make  an  admirable 
Introduction  to  heavier  reading  on  socialism. 

2.  Collectivism  and   Industrial   Evolution.     By 

Emile  Vandervelde,  member  of  the  Cham- 
ber of  Deputies,  Belgium.  Translated  by 
Charles  H.  Kerr,  Cloth,  50  cents.   - 

The  author  is  a  socialist  member  of  the  Belgian 
Parliament  and  is  one  of  the  ablest  writers  in  the 
international  socialist  movement.  This  book  is,  on 
the  whole,  the  most  satisfactory  brief  summary  of  the 
principles  of  socialism  that  has  yet  been  written. 
One  distinctive  feature  of  it  is  that  it  takes  up  the 
difficult  questions  of  how  the  machinery  of  production 
could  be  acquired  and  how  wages  could  be  adjusted 
under  a  socialist  administration. 


2  BOOKS   ON    SOCIALISM,   ETC. 

3.  The    American    Farmer:      An    Economic   and 

Historical  Study.  Uy  A.  M.  Siuuuis.  t'lotli, 
50  cents. 

"Tho  American  Farmor,"  in  spite  of  Its  small  size. 
Is  the  larKCSt  ci>ntrll)ntion  yet  >;lven  to  tho  agrarian 
literature  of  this  country.  The  author,  besides  l)elii>; 
a  student  of  American  social  conditions,  is  thoron>;hly 
conversant  with  practical  farming,  and  there  is  little 
doubt  that  the  farmer  who  reads  the  work  will  have 
to  admit  that  the  conclusions  are  based  on  a  real 
understanding  of  the  difficulties  of  his  struggle  with 
the  soil,  with  railroads.  tr\ists  and  foreign  comi)et- 
Itors. — Chicago   Tribune. 

4.  The  Last  Days  of  the  Ruskin   Co-operative 

Association.  By  Isaac  Broome.  Cloth,  il- 
lustrated, 50  cents. 

Socialism  does  not  mean  withdrawing  from  the  class 
struggle  and  trying  to  set  up  a  paradise  on  a  small 
scale.  If  there  are  those  who  still  think  such  a 
scheme  practicable,  they  will  find  interesting  facts  in 
this  book. 

5.  The  Origin  of  the  Family,  Private  Property 

and  the  State.  By  Frederick  Engels.  Trans- 
lated by  Ernest  Untermanu.  Cloth,  50 
cents. 

Some  people  Imagine  that  riches  and  poverty  always 
have  existed  and  therefore  always  will  exist.  Such 
people  need  more  facts,  and  this  book  gives  them. 
Engels  has  summarized  and  popularized  the  informa- 
tion given  more  fully  in  Morgan's  "Ancient  Society," 
and  has  also  added  many  important  facts  from  other 
sources  and  outlined  some  inevitable  conclusions  from 
the  facts. 

6.  The  Social  Revolution.     By   Karl  Kautsky. 

Translated  by  A.  M.  and  May  Wood  Si- 
mons.   Cloth,  50  cents. 

Kautsky  is  the  editor  of  the  Neiie  Zeit,  and  is  tmi- 
versally  recognized  as  one  of  the  ablest  socialist  writ- 
ers and  thinkers  in  Europe.  This  book  is  in  two  parts. 
Part  I.,  Reform  and  Revolution,  explains  the  essen- 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


tlal  difference  between  the  socialist  party  and  all 
reform  parties.  Part  II.,  The  Day  After  the  Revolu- 
tion, gives  straightforward  answers  to  the  questiona 
so  often  asked  about  what  the  socialists  would  do  if 
entrusted  with  the  powers  of  government. 

7.  Socialism,  Utopian  and  Scientific.    By  Fred- 

erick Engels.  Translated  by  Edward  Ave- 
ling,  D.  Sc,  with  a  Special  Introduction  by 
the  Author.     Clothj  50  cents. 

This  book  ranks  next  to  the  Communist  Manifesto 
as  one  of  the  best  short  statements  in  any  language 
of  the  fundamental  principles  of  socialism.  It  is 
an  essential  part  of  every  socialist  library,  however 
small. 

8.  Feuerbach:     The  Roots  of  the  Socialist  Phil- 

osophy, By  Frederick  Etigels.  Translated, 
with  Critical  Introduction,  by  Austin  Lewis. 
Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  book  is  a  criticism  on  the  works  of  a  forgotten 
philosopher,  but  it  is  still  of  timely  interest,  since 
attempts  are  still  being  made  to  reintroduce  dualist 
notions  into  the  philosophy  of  socialism.  In  this 
book  Engels  shows  the  importance  of  explaining  his- 
tory and  current  events  in  terms  of  science  rather 
than  of  theology.  Austin  Lewis  contributes  an  in- 
teresting  historical   introduction. 

9.  American   Pauperism   and   the   Abolition   of 

Poverty.  By  Isador  Ladoff,  with  a  supple- 
ment, "Jesus  or  Mammon,"  by  J.  Felix. 
Cloth,  50  cents. 

A  study  of  the  last  United  States  census,  bringing 
out  in  bold  relief  the  social  contrasts  that  are  pur- 
posely left  obscure  in  the  official  documents.  An 
arsenal  of  facts  for  socialist  writers  and  speakers. 

10.  Britain  for  the  British  (America  for  the 
Americans.)  By  Robert  Blatchford,  with 
American  Appendix  by  A.  M.  Simons.  Cloth, 
50  cents. 

A  popular  presentation  of  socialism,  in  the  same 
charming  and  simple  style  as  the  author's  "Merrie 
England, '  but  giving  a  far  more  adequate  and  scien- 
tific account  of  the  subject. 


/ 


4  BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM.  ETC. 

11.  Manifesto  of  the  Communist  Party.    By  Karl 

Marx  ami  Frodcrick  En<,'Pls.  Autliorized 
Enfjlisli  translation:  Edited  and  Annotated 
by  Fretlerick  Knirol^^.  Also  iiicliulcd  in  the 
same  volume,  No  Compromise:  No  Politi- 
cal Trading.  By  Wilhelin  Liebkneeht. 
Translate<l  by  A.  M.  8inions  and  Marcus 
Hitch.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  manifesto,  first  published  In  1848,  is  still 
recofrnized  the  worhl  over  as  the  cloarcst  statement 
of  the  principles  of  the  international  socialist  party. 
It  has  boon  translated  into  the  language  of  every 
country  where  capitalism  exists,  and  it  is  being  cir- 
culated more  rapidly  today  than  ever  before. 

12.  The  Positive  School  of  Criminology.     By  En- 

rico Ferri.  Translated  by  Ernest  Unter- 
mann.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

The  science  of  criminology  has  been  revolutionized 
within  one  generation  by  the  socialist  students  of 
Italy,  of  whom  Ferri  is  the  most  prominent  living 
representative.  This  book  is  indispensable  to  any  ono 
desiring  reliable  information  on  the  modern  theory 
of  crime  and   its   treatment. 

13.  The    World's    Revolutions.     By    Ernest    Un- 

termann.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

A  study  of  the  economic  causes  of  the  great  revo- 
lutions of  the  world's  history  in  the  light  of  the 
socialist  principle  of  historical  materialism. 

14.  The    Socialists,    Who   They    Are    and   What 

They  Stand  For.  By  John  Spargo.  Cloth, 
50  cents. 

Scientific  yet  readable  and  easy ;  written  in  a  style 
that  the  man  in  the  street  will  understand  and  the 
man  in  the  university  will  admire.  Just  the  book  to 
start  a  new  reader. 

15.  Social  and  Philosophical  Studies.     By  Paul 

Lafargue.     Translated  by  Charles  H.  Kerr. 

Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  book  contains  two  studies  entirely  new  to 
American    readers,    "Causes    of    Belief    in    God,"    and 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


"The  Origin  of  Abstract  Ideas."  Ttie  satire  on  capi- 
talistic ethics  is  refreshing  and  Lafargue's  brliilant 
style  makes  even  the  most  abstract  subjects  delightful. 

16.  What's   So   and  What    Isn't.     By   John  M. 

Work.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  book  was  originally  published  in  pamphlet 
form  by  the  Appeal  to  Reason.  It  has  proved  excep- 
tionally valuable  from  the  fact  that  it  gives  con- 
vincing and  forcible  answers  to  all  the  stock  objec- 
tions to  socialism.  The  present  edition  is  the  first 
to  be  printed  in  library  style,  and  it  has  been  care- 
fully revised  by  the  author,  several  new  chapters 
being  added. 

17.  Ethics   and  the   Materialistic   Conception   of 

History.    By  Karl  Kautsky.   Translated  by 
John  B.  Askew.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  work,  by  one  of  the  foremost  European  social- 
ists, is  one  of  the  most  important  helps  to  clear 
thinking  on  a  vital  part  of  the  socialist  philosophy 
and  its  application.  The  author  reviews  ancient  and 
Christian  ethics,  the  ethics  of  the  Renaissance,  the 
ethic  of  Kant,  and  the  ethic  of  Darwinism,  and  de- 
votes the  latter  half  of  his  book  to  a  compre- 
hensive study  of  the  ethics  of  Marxism. 

18.  Class  Struggles  in  America.     Third  Edition, 

revised   and   enlarged.     By   A.  M.   Simons. 
Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  work  is  a  brief  history  of  the  United  States 
in  the  light  of  the  socialist  principle  of  historical 
materialism.  It  has  already  run  through  two  large 
editions  in  pamphlet  form.  It  excited  much  com- 
ment and  there  were  frequent  requests  for  references 
to  the  sources  of  statements  which  seemed  startling 
to  those  not  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  subject. 
The  present  edition  contains  no  less  than  one  hun- 
dred of  these  references  and  it  is  invaluable  to  social- 
ists desiring  to  make  a  thorough  study  of  United 
States  history. 


BOOKS  OX    SOCIALISM,  KTC. 


LIBRARY    OF  SCIENCE  FOR  THE  WORKERS 

ModiMii  International  Socialism  is  directly  re 
lated  to  modern  science.  It  is  in  a  sense  the  evo^ 
hit  ion  theory  applied  to  the  facts  of  society.  It 
therefore  follows  that  for  a  full  understandinjj 
of  socialism  some  general  knowledf^e  of  the  facta 
of  modern  science  is  necessary. 

A  new  series  of  books  has  lately  appeared  in 
Germany  which  give  in  simple  and  popular  form 
complete  proofs  of  the  evolution  theory  along  with 
a  clear  account  of  the  latest  applications  of  this 
theory  in  the  various  fields  of  modern  science.  Wo 
have  arranged  to  translate  and  publish  some  of  the 
best  of  these,  along  with  such  original  works  in 
the  same  line  as  are  available.  They  are  uniform 
in  size  with  the  Standard  Socialist  Series. 

1.  The  Evolution  of  Man.    By  Wilhelm  Boelsche. 

Translated   by   Ernest  Untermann.     Cloth, 
50  cents. 

"The  Evolution  of  Man"  tells  in  full  detail,  in  a 
clear,  simple  style,  illustrated  by  pictures,  just  how 
the  descent  of  man  can  be  traced  back  through  mon- 
keys, marsupials,  amphibians,  fishes,  worms  and 
lower  forms  of  life,  down  to  the  animals  composed 
each  of  a  single  cell.  Moreover,  it  proves  that  there 
is  no  such  fixed  line  as  was  formerly  thought  to  exist 
between  the  organic  and  the  inorganic,  but  that  the 
same  life-force  molds  the  crystal  that  molds  the  cell. 
It  is  not  only  simple;  it  is  up-to-date  and  gives 
the  latest  discoveries  in  science.  It  is  the  book  oa 
the    subject. 

2.  Germs  of  Mind  in  Plants.     By  R.  H.  France. 

Translated  by  A.  M.  Simons.     Cloth,  illus. 
trated,  50  cents. 

A  cardinal  point  in  the  philosophical  system! 
favored  by  the  ruling  classes  is  that  the  mind  of  man 
is  something  unique  in  the  universe,  governed  by  laws 
of  Its  own  that  have  no  particular  connection  with 
physical  laws.  Modern  science  has  proved  that  not 
only  animals,  but  also  plants,  receive  Impressions  from 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


the  outside  world  and  use  the  data  thus  obtained  to 
modify  their  movements  for  their  own  advantage,  ex- 
actly as  human  beings  do.  These  facts  are  told  In 
this  book  in  so  charming  and  entertaining  a  style 
that  the  reader  is  carried  along  and  does  not  realize 
until  later  the  revolutionary  significance  of  the  facts. 

3.  The    End   of    the   World.      By    Dr.    Wilhelm 

Meyer.  Translated  by  Margaret  Wagner. 
Cloth,  illustrated,  50  cents. 

This  book  answers  in  the  light  of  the  discovery  of 
modern  science  the  questions  frequently  asked  as  to 
the  probable  end  of  human  life  on  this  planet.  More- 
over, it  goes  a  step  further  in  making  clear  the  rela- 
tions of  man's  life  to  the  universe  life.  We  have 
already  seen  that  "mind"  Is  but  another  form  of 
"life."  Dr.  Meyer  shows  that  not  onl.v  animals  and 
plants  but  even  worlds  and  suns  have  their  birth, 
growth,  maturity,  reproduction,  decay  and  death,  and 
that  death  is  but  the  preparation  for  a  new  cycle 
Of  life. 

4.  Science  and  Revolution:    A  Historical  Study 

of  the  Evolution  of  the  Theory  of  Evolu- 
tion. By  Ernest  Untermann.  Cloth,  50 
cents. 

A  history  of  the  evolution  of  the  theory  of  evolu- 
tion, from  the  earliest  scientific  writings  that  have 
been  preserved,  those  of  the  Greek  philosophers,  down 
to  the  present  time.  The  author  shows  how  the  rul- 
ing classes,  living  on  the  labor  of  others,  have  always 
supported  some  form  of  theology  or  mysticism,  while 
the  working  classes  have  developed  "the  theory  of 
evolution,  which  is  rounded  out  to  its  logical  com- 
pletion by  the  work  of  Marx,  Engels  and  Dietzgen. 
The  author  frankly  recognizes  that  no  writer  can 
avoid  being  influenced  by  his  class  environment,  and 
he  himself  speaks  distinctly  as  a  proletarian  and  a 
socialist.  "Science  and  Revolution"  is  an  essential 
link  in  the  chain  of  evidence  proving  the  conclusions 
drawn   by    socialists   from   the  facts   of   science. 

5.  The  Triumph  of  Life.     By  Wilhelm  Boelsche. 

Translated  by  May  Wood  Simons.  Cloth, 
50  cents. 

The  German  critics  agree  that  this  hook  is  even 
more   interesting   than   "The    Evolution    of   Man,"   by 


BOOKS  O.N  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


the  samp  author.  It  tolls  of  the  stniRRle  of  life 
against  Its  i)h.vslcal  envlrontuont,  and  Introduces  a 
wealth  of  si'lcntllic  detail  charnilnj;ly  set  forth.  The 
Herman  orii^liial  contains  no  llhistratlon.s,  but  o>ir 
edition  Is  fully  Illustrated  with  jilctures  that  al<l 
materially  in  an  understanding  of  the  text. 

6.  Life  and  Death,  a  Chapter  From  the  Science 

of   Life.      By    Dr.    K.    Toicluiiann.      'Jraiis- 
lated  by  A.  M.  Simons.     C'lotli,  50  cents. 

A  study  of  how  life  begins  and  how  it  ends.  It 
does  not  duplicate  any  other  bool;  in  this  series,  but 
is  a  special  investigation  into  the  laws  which  govern 
the  reproduction  of  life.  It  also  deals  with  the 
methods  by  which  the  life  of  each  separate  individual 
is  brought  to  an  end,  and  shows  that  in  an  over- 
whelming majority  of  cases  throughout  the  whole  ani- 
mal kingdom  death  is  violent  rather  than  "natural." 
Even  among  human  beings  a  really  "natural"  death 
is  rare.  The  author  suggests  that  with  improved 
conditions  of  living,  most  premature  deaths  may  be 
prevented,  and  that  in  that  event  the  fear  of  death, 
which  causes  so  much  of  the  misery  of  the  world, 
may   disappear. 

7.  The  Making  of  the  World.    By  Dr.  M.  Wil- 

helm  Meyer.     Translated  by  Ernest  Unter- 
mann.    Cloth,  50  cents. 

This  is  a  companion  volume  to  "The  End  of  the 
World,"  and  traces  the  processes  through  which  new 
suns  and  new  worlds  come  into  being  to  talce  the 
place  of  those  that  have  grown  old  and  died.  It  is  an 
essential  link  in  the  chain  of  evidence  proving  that 
the  human  mind  is  not  something  apart  from  nature 
but  only  another  manifestation  of  the  one  force  that 
pervades  all  "matter."  The  book  has  twenty-four 
illustrations,  for  the  most  part  reproductions  of  tele- 
scopic photographs,  which  make  the  truth  of  the 
Statements  in  the  book  evident  to  every  reader. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  9 

THE  INTERNATIONAL   LIBRARY   OF  SOCIAL 
SCIENCE. 

This  new  library,  the  first  volume  of  which  ap- 
peared in  January,  1906,  contains  in  substantial 
and  artistic  cloth  binding  some  of  the  most  im- 
portant works  on  socialism  and  kindred  subjects 
that  have  ever  been  offered  in  the  English  lan- 
guage. While  our  price  has  been  fixed  at  a  dollar 
a  volume,  most  of  the  books  in  the  library  are  equal 
to  the  sociological  books  sold  by  other  publishers 
at  from  $1.50  to  $2.00. 

1.  The  Changing  Order.    A  Study  of  Democracy. 

By    Oscar    Lovell    Triggs,    Ph.    D.      Cloth, 
$1.00. 

Dr.  Triggs  was  a  prominent  professor  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Cliicago,  but  tie  taught  too  much  truth  for 
Standard  Oil,  and  is  no  longer  a  professor  in  the 
University  of  Chicago.  This  boolj  contains  some  of 
the  truth  that  was  too  revolutionary  for  Mr.  Rocke- 
feller's institution.  It  traces  the  inevitable  rise  of 
democracy  in  industry,  in  other  words,  of  a  worl^ing 
class  movement  that  will  take  industry  out  of  the 
control  of  capitalists.  It  also  studies  the  necessary 
effect  of  this  rising  democracy  on  literature  and  art, 
on  work  and  play,  on  education  and  religion. 

2.  Better- World  Philosophy.    A  Sociological  syn- 

thesis.   By  J.  Howard  Moore.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

I  know  of  no  book  that  so  truly  begins  at  the  begin- 
ning of  things,  determined  to  know  the  truth,  how- 
ever harsh  or  naked  it  may  appear,  and  then  to  build 
thereon  an  honest  and  effective  optimism.  I  think 
that  all  our  future  philosophy  will  have  to  begin 
where  Professor  Moore  begins  ;  not  with  metaphysical 
speculations  like  the  philosophers  of  old.  but  with 
the  fearful  facts  of  our  life,  and  out  of  these  fearful 
facts,  out  of  the  human  soil  and  chance  and  struggle, 
forecast  principles  and  prophecies  that  shall  make 
the  facts  of  life  more  beautiful  than  our  most  beauti- 
ful dreams. 

George  D.  Hereon. 


10  UOOKS  ON   SOCIALISM,   KTC. 

3.  The  Universal  Kinship.     Hv  I.  Howard  Moore. 

Cloth,  $1.00. 

I  do  not  know  of  nuy  book  doaling  with  ovolutton 
thnt  1  have  read  wilb  .such  ki'oii  intci-cst.  Mr.  Mooi-e 
has  a  hroad  fjrasp  and  shows  masterly  knowledge  of 
the  subject.  And  withal  the  interest  never  Hags.  The 
book  reads  like  a  novel.  One  Is  constantly  keyed  up 
and  expectant.  Mr.  Moore  is  to  be  congratulated  upon 
the  uiaKnlflcent  way  In  which  he  has  made  alive  the 
dull,  heavy  processes  of  the  big  hooks.  And,  then, 
there  Is  his  style.  He  uses  splendid  virile  English 
and  shows  a  fine  appreciation  of  the  values  of  words, 
lie   uses  always  the  right  word. 

Jack    London. 

4.  Principles  of  Scientific  Socialism.    Hv  Charles 

H.  Vail.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

The  most  successful  summary  of  Marxian  Socialism 
ever  written  by  an  American  author.  It  opens  with 
a  brief  sketch  of  industrial  evolution,  then  explains 
the  theory  of  surplus  value,  and  then  enters  into  a 
comprehensive  discussion  of  the  advantages  of  social- 
ism. The  reviewer  of  the  t^'hicago  Daily  News,  of 
course  an  opponent  of  socialism,  praises  this  book  as 
"logical,   sincere  and  restrained." 

5.  Some  of  the  Philosophical  Essays  on  Social- 

ism and  Science,  Religion,  Ethics,  Critique 
of  Reason  and  the  World  at  Large.  By 
Joseph  Dietjifj;cn,  translated  by  M.  Beer 
and  Th.  Rothstsein.  With  a  biographical 
sketch  and  some  introductory  remarks  by 
Eugene  Dietzgen,  translated  by  Ernest  Un- 
temiann.  Edited  by  Eugene  Dietzgen. 
Cloth,  $1,00. 

These  writings  of  Dietzgen  roimd  out  the  socialist 
thought  on  a  side  never  covered  in  detail  by  Marx 
himself,  who,  by  the  way,  gave  the  fullest  recognition 
to  the  importance  of  Dietzgen's  work.  No  one  who 
wishes  to  understand  socialism  thoroughly  can  afford 
to  miss  reading  Dietzgen.  The  book  is  far  less  diffi- 
cult reading  than  its  title  might  seem  to  indicate. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  11 

«.  Essays  on  the  Materialistic  Conception  of 
History.  By  Antonio  Labriola.  Translated 
by  Charles  H.  Kerr.  Second  edition.  Cloth, 
$1.00. 

Modern  socialism  cannot  be  understood  without  a 
knowledge  of  the  principle  of  liistorical  materialism. 
This  is  only  outlined  briefly  in  the  writings  of 
Marx,  and  it  is  best  developed  in  these  essays  of 
Labriola.  The  book  demands  careful  study,  but  it 
also  repays  careful  study. 

7.  Love's  Coming-of-Age.  By  Edward  Carpenter. 

Cloth,  $1.00. 

Only  one  who  nnites  in  himself  the  qualities  of 
poet  and  scientist,  as  Carpenter  does,  can  write 
understandingly  of  the  sex  relation.  "Love's  Coming- 
of-Age"  is  a  work  that  will  help  men  to  understand 
women  and  women  to  understand  men.  and  will  help 
both  to  solve  the  new  problems  which  changed  eco- 
nomic conditions  have  Introduced  and  will  introduce 
into  the  relations  of  men  and  women  to  each  other. 

8.  Looking  Forward.     A  Treatise  on  the  Status 

of  Woman  and  the  Origin  and  the  Growth 
of  the  Family  and  the  State.  By  Philip 
Rappaport.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

Rappaport  is  a  thorough  student  of  history  and  of 
law,  and  his  book  is  an  excellent  complement  to  Car- 
penter's, in  that  he  studies  the  historical  basis  of  the 
marriage  relation,  and  lays  the  foundation  for  logical 
conclusions  as  to  the  probable  and  necessary  action  of 
society  in  the  near  future  as  to  the  economic  and 
legal  status  of  woman. 

9.  The   Positive   Outcome   of  Philosophy.     By 

Joseph  Dietzgen.  Translated  by  Ernest  Un- 
termann,  with  an  introduction  by  Dr.  An- 
ton Pannekoek.  Edited  by  Eugene  Dietz- 
gen and  Joseph  Dietzgen,  Jr.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  volume  includes  Dietzgen's  three  principal 
works,  "The  Nature  of  Human  Brain  Work,"  "Let- 
ters on  Logic,"  and  "The  Positive  Outcome  of  Philos- 
ophy." Joseph  Dietzgen,  a  contemporary  and  co- 
worker of  Karl  Marx,  has  long  been  recognized  by 
European  socialists  as  one  of  the  greatest  writers  on 


12  nOOKS   ON   SOCIAI.ISM.  KTC. 


the  socialist  pliilosoplij'.  Onr  translations  now  bring 
these  works  for  tlie  lirst  time  within  the  reach  of 
American  students. 

10.  Socialism  and  Philosophy.     By  Antonio  La- 

briula,  autlior  of  "Essays  on  the  Material- 
istic (.'oncoption  of  History."  Translated 
from  tlio  Italian  by  Ernest  Untermann. 
Cloth.     $1.00. 

"Socialism  and  Philosophy"  is  comparatively  easy 
reading.  It  is  in  the  form  of  familiar  personal  letters 
to  Sorel.  the  socialist  who  first  introduced  Labrlola's 
writinj;s  to  French  readers.  The  style  Is  simple, 
direct  and  forceful,  while  I.abriola's  thought  Is  always 
keen  and  penetrating.  The  argument  of  the  letters  ia 
a  defense  of  the  Marxian  position  against  oppor- 
tunism, sentimentaiism  and  theories  of  "natural 
rights"  and  "eternal  truths." 

11.  The  Physical  Basis  of  Mind  and  Morals.    By 

M.  H.  Fitch.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  work  is  a  critical  study  of  the  evolution  theory 
and  its  applications  to  social  science  and  ethics.  The 
author  reviews  the  work  of  Darwin  and  Spencer,  and 
shows  how  theology  reappears  under  another  form 
in  many  who  think  themselves  evolutionists.  What 
we  call  "mind  is  produced  by  nerve  tissue,  and  moral- 
ity, like  life  itself,  is  a  correspondence  of  the  indi- 
vidual with  his  environment.  The  author  develops 
and  applies  this  thought  in  a  series  of  interesting 
chapters. 

12.  Revolutionary  Essays  in  Socialist  Faith  and 

Fancy.      Bv    Peter    E.    Burrowes.      Cloth, 

$1.00. 

Fifty-six  .short  essays,  starting  from  the  hard  facts 
of  materialist  science,  and  building  from  those  facts 
a  delightful  fabric  of  fancy.  Each  essay  is  condensed 
and  thought-provoking ;  the  book  is  not  one  to  be 
read  at  a  single  sitting,  but  to  be  taken  up  again  and 
again  at  leisure  moments.  The  author  is  well  known 
as  a  frequent  contributor  to  leading  socialist  peri- 
odicals. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  13 

13.     Marxian  Economics.     By  Ernest  Untermann. 
Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  author  has  already  translated  the  second  vol- 
ume of  Marx's  "Capital"  for  publication,  and  is  now 
at  work  on  his  final  revision  of  the  third  and  last 
volume.  His  present  work  is  a  distinct  advance  on 
any  previous  manual,  since  it  is  based  on  Marx's 
complete  work,  instead  of  the  first  volume  alone,  and 
at  the  same  time  it  is  written  in  easy  and  popular 
style.      (In  preparation.) 


// 


14  HOOKS  ox   HOCIAI.TSM.  ETC. 


THE  SOCIAL  SCIENCE  SERIES. 

These  hooks  iiro  thp  croam  of  a  lihrarj'  of  over 
100  vohimes  issued  hy  a  London  puhlisliing  house. 
Wc  import  only  such  vohimes  as  we  re<,'ard  es- 
pecially important  to  students  of  socialism,  and 
ofler  these  on  the  same  terms  as  our  own  publica- 
tions. 

Work  and  Wages.    By  Prof.  J.  E.  Thorold  Rogers. 
Cloth,  $1.00. 

Shows  that  the  real  wages  of  the  laborer,  as 
measured  by  his  standard  of  living,  are  actually 
lower  now  than   in  the  fifteenth  century. 

Civilization,  Its  Cause  and  Cure.    By  Edward  Car- 
penter.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

England's  Ideal,  and  Other  Papers  on  Social  Sub- 
jects.   By  Edward  Carpenter.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

Edward  Carpenter  is  at  once  a  profound  student  of 
social  problems,  an  essayist  with  a  most  charming 
style,  and  a  writer  of  true  poetic  insight.  Every- 
thing he  writes  is  worth  reading. 

The  Religion  of  Socialism.     By   E.  Belfort  Bax. 

Cloth,  $1.00. 

The   Ethics   of   Socialism.     By    E.    Belfort  Bax. 

Cloth,  $1.00. 

Outlooks  from  the  New  Standpoint.     By  E.  Bel- 
fort Bax.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

Story  of  the  French  Revolution.     By  E.  Belfort 
Bax.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

The  Westminster  Review  calls  Bax  "by  all  odds  the 
ablest  of  the  British  exponents  of  socialism,"  and 
there  are  certainly  not  more  than  one  or  two  who 
could  dispute  the  title  with  him.  All  of  his  books 
are  easy  and  pleasant  reading,  and  at  the  same  time 
highly  suggestive  and  valuable  to  the  student  of 
socialism. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  15 


The  Quintessence  of  Socialism.  By  Dr.  A.  Schaef  f  le. 
Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  work  Is  by  an  opponent  of  socialism,  but  an 
opponent  who  is  usually  fair  as  well  as  able.  It  is 
one  of  the  best  answers  that  can  be  found  to  the 
thousand  and  one  objections  to  socialism  that  are 
based  on  nothing  but  ignorance  or  falsehood. 

Bismarck  and  State  Socialism.  An  Exposition  of 
the  Social  and  Economic  Legislation  of  Ger- 
many Since  1870.  By  W.  H.  Dawson. 
Cloth,  $1.00. 
German  Socialism  and  Ferdinand  Lassalle.  A  bio- 
graphical History  of  German  Socialistic 
Movements  During  the  Nineteenth  Century. 
By  W.  H.  Dawson.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

These  two  historical  works  are  of  especial  value 
in  showing  the  diametrically  opposite  character  of 
"State  Socialism."  as  typified  by  Bismarck,  and  the 
international  socialist  movement. 

The  Evolution  of  Property,  From  Savagery  to 
Civilization.  By  Paul  Lafargue.  Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  work  shows  that  our  modern  capitalist  system, 
far  from  being  eternal  and  unchangeable,  is  really  a 
recent  innovation  and  contains  within  itself  the  germs 
of  a  better  civilization  that  is  to  follow. 

The  Student's  Marx.  An  Introduction  to  the  Study 
of  Karl  Marx'  Capital.  By  Edward  Aveling, 
D.  Sc.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

This  took  is  a  useful  help  to  the  study  of  Marx's 
great  work. 

Ferdinand   Lassalle   as   a   Social   Reformer.     By 

Edward  Bernstein.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

A  valuable  historical  work,  not  duplicating  but  sup- 
plementing Mr.  Dawson's  book  on  the  same  subject. 

Parasitism,  Organic  and  Social.  By  Jean  Massart 
and  Emile  Vandervelde.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

In  this  book,  a  competent  biologist  and  an  able 
sociologist  have  united  in  drawing  a  striking  parallel 
between  two  classes  of  parasites. 


16  BOOKS  OX  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 

Revolution  and  Counter-Revolution,  or  Germany 
in  1848.    By  Karl  Marx.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

Ki'prlntpd  from  letters  written  to  the  New  York 
Trllmuo  by   Marx  In   1851   and   1852. 

Overproduction  and  Crises.  By  Karl  Rodbertus. 
Witli  an  Introduction  by  Prof.  John  B. 
Clark,  of  Columbia  University.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

A  socialist  solution,  published  In  1851,  of  a  proli- 
lem   which   is  baffling  orthodox  economists  today. 

The  Origin  and  Growth  of  Village  Communities  in 
India.  Bv  B.  H.  Baden-Powell,  M.  A.,  C. 
I.  E.    Cloth,  $1.00. 

A  scientific  study  of  a  remarkable  survival  of  a 
phase  of  primitive  communism  in  the  British  domin- 
ions today. 

The  Condition  of  the  Working  Class  in  England  in 
1844.  \Yith  Preface  Written  in  1892.  By 
Frederick  Engels.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

A  social  study  of  the  highest  importance.  The 
reader  cannot  fail  to  note  the  analogy  between  con- 
ditions in  England  in  1844  and  in  South  Carolina 
today. 

Socialism,  Its  Growth  and  Outcome.  By  William 
Morris  and  E.  Belfort  Bax.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

This  work  is  popular  and  entertaining  In  style,  and 
is  an  excellent  book  for  l>eginners. 

The  Economic  Foundations  of  Society.  By  Achilla 
Loria.     Cloth,  $1.25. 

Shows  how  systems  of  morality,  laws  and  political 
Institutions  are  the  necessary  outcome  of  economic 
conditions. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  17 

OTHER  SOCIALIST  BOOKS 
In  Cloth  Binding. 

Capital:  A  Critical  Analysis  of  Capitalistic  Pro- 
duction. By  Karl  Marx.  Translated  from 
the  third  German  edition,  by  Samuel  Moore 
and  Edward  Aveling,  and  edited  by  Fred- 
erick Engels,  First  complete  American  edi- 
tion, revised  by  Ernest  Untermann,  includ- 
ing the  additions  made  by  Frederick  Engels 
to  the  fourth  German  edition,  with  topical 
index.    Cloth,  $2.00. 

"Das  Kapital,"  in  the  original  German,  makes  three 
large  volumes,  containing  about  2,500  pages.  Only  the 
first  volume  has  ever  appeared  In  the  English  lan- 
guage as  yet,  and  it  has  frequently  been  advertised 
in  a  way  to  convey  the  impression  that  it  was  the 
entire  work.  We  have  heretofore  been  supplying  the 
London  edition  of  the  first  volume.  Our  new  edition, 
published  in  November,  1906,  contains  the  same 
matter  as  this,  with  some  important  additions,  includ- 
ing topical  index.  We  have  also  in  preparation  an 
entirely  new  translation  by  Ernest  Untermpnn  of  the 
second  and  third  German  volumes,  which  will  make  a 
complete  and  uniform  edition  of  the  entire  work. 
The  second  volume  will  probably  be  issued  in  1907  and 
the  third  in  1908.  The  exact  date  of  publication  and 
the  price  of  each  volume  will  be  announced  later. 

Ancient  Society:  or  Researches  in  the  Lines  of 
Human  Progress;  From  Savagery  Through 
Barbarism  to  Civilization.  By  Lewis  H. 
Morgan,  LL.D.     Cloth,   $1.50. 

The  first  edition  of  this  great  work  was  published 
in  1877.  It  has  been  recognized  by  the  scholars  of 
Europe  and  America  as  the  highest  authority  on  the 
subject  of  which  it  treats,  and  its  conclusions  are 
of  the  utmost  value  to  socialists,  since  it  proves  that 
the  system  of  private  property,  based  on  some  form 
of  chattel  or  wage  slavery,  is  not  eternal  but  com- 
paratively recent.  The  circulation  of  this  book  has 
heretofore  been  very  limited  on  account  of  its  high 
price.  The  copyright  has  expired  and  we  now  offer 
this  popular  edition. 


18  BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 

God's  Children.     A  Modern  Allcj^ory.     Ky  James 
Allnian.     C'lotli,  50  cents. 

"fiod's  Children  ;  A  Modorn  Alloprory,"  Is  a  sarcastic 
and  almost  cynical  account  of  our  |)rpsent  state  of 
civilization  written  by  an  IOhkIIsIi  radical,  .lames  All- 
man.  It  relates  the  experiences  of  an  affable  arch- 
angel In  the  city  of  London,  the  othcial  emissary  of 
omnipotence,  and  contrives  to  exhibit  in  small  space 
as  many  disagreeable  things  that  are  crying  for  cor- 
rection as  can  be  well  imagined.— Chicago  Daily  News. 

The  author  Is  a  man  of  more  than  ordinary  literary 
ability,  and  his  little  work,  "(^Jod's  Children,"  is  a 
credit  to  the  socialist  movement. — Labor,  St.   Louis. 

The  Rebel  at  Large.    By  May  Beals.    A  volume  of 
short  stories.     Cloth,  50  cents. 

May  Deals'  stories  are  good  literature  and  good 
socialism.  The  author  has  the  sympathetic  Insight 
Into  human  motives  and  feelings  that  enables  her  to 
give  voice  to  the  victims  of  capitalism  who  have  suf- 
fered in  silence.  She  has  the  artist-sense  that  makes 
her  choose  the  words  that  will  at  once  move  the  un- 
cultured and  satisfy  the  critical  judgment  of  the  cul- 
tured. And  she  has  a  firm  grasp  of  the  underlying 
principles  of  socialism.  She  does  not  preach  soicial- 
ism  In  these  stories;  she  tells  the  stories  in  a  way 
that  enables  every  reader  to  draw  the  moral  for 
himself. 

The  International  Socialist  Review.     Volume   I., 

1900-1901.     Cloth,  $5.00. 
The  International  Socialist  Review.    Volumes  II., 

III.,  IV.,  v.,  VI.     Cloth,   each  $2.00. 

The  International  Socialist  Review  is  a  magazine 
of  64  pages,  published  on  the  15th  of  each  month. 
These  bound  volumes  constitute  the  best  obtainable 
history  of  the  international  socialist  movement  and 
of  the  socialist  thought  of  the  world  for  the  six 
years  ending  June,  1000.  Only  a  very  few  copies  of 
Volume  I.  are  still  to  be  had. 

The  Recording  Angel.     By   Edwin  Arnold  Bren- 
holtz.     Cloth,  287  pages,  $1.00. 

I  have  just  finished  reading  Comrade  Brenholtz's 
latest    book,    "The    Recording    Angel,"    published    by 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  19 


Charles  II.  Kerr  &  Co.  It  stands  alone  in  a  class  by 
Itself  as  a  book  heralding  the  New  Time.  Brenholtz 
has  a  genius  that  will  entitle  him  later  on  to  be 
known  as  the  Walt  Whitman  of  the  Social  Revolution. 
He  is  a  socialist  in  whom  there  Is  no  guile— a  com- 
rade whose  hand  it  is  a  pleasure  to  clasp.  His  book 
should  be  in  the  library  of  every  Socialist — it  can  be 
loaned  and  reloaned  to  good  advantage  among  your 
neighbors.  I  would  suggest  that  you  start  a  circulat- 
ing library  with  "The  Recording  Angel"  as  the  first 
volume. — Apjieal  to  Reason   (editorial). 

The  Socialization  of  Humanity.  By  Charles  Ken- 
dall Franklin.     Cloth,  $2.00. 

The  philosophy  that  we  need  today  is  one  that  can 
grapple  with  the  live  problems  of  society,  and  it  is 
such  a  philosophy  that  the  author  here  presents.  The 
chapter  on  "The  Supreme  Law  of  Ethics"  is  a  valu- 
able addition  to  modern  thought.  As  a  philosopher, 
Mr.  Franklin  is  practical,  as  a  socialist  he  is  philo- 
sophical. It  is  the  first  time  that  philosophy  and 
socialism   have  joined  hands. — Boston  Transcript. 

The  Sale  of  an  Appetite.  By  Paul  Lafargue. 
Translated  by  Charles  H.  Kerr.  Cloth,  illus- 
trated, 50  cents. 

This  is  a  realistic  story  of  gay  Paris,  and  at  the 
same  time  a  striking  picture  of  the  contrasts  between 
the  life  of  the  working  class  and  the  owning  class. 
It  embodies  a  startling  allegory,  bringing  out  the  fact 
that  the  laborer  is  obliged  to  sell  his  various  bodily 
functions  in  order  to  live.  Three  original  wash 
drawings  by  Dorothy  Deene  add  to  the  vividness  of 
the  story. 

Walt  Whitman.  The  Poet  of  the  Wider  Selfhood. 
By  Mila  Tupper  Maynard.    Cloth,  145  pages, 

$i.oo. 

Reverently  critical  throughout,  it  passes  lightly 
over  the  faults,  and  points  out  with  loving  care  the 
beauties  in  Whitman's  poems. — Chicago  Tribune. 

To  all  lovers  of  Whitman  this  little  gem  of  litera- 
ture from  the  pen  of  a  Western  authoress  will  prove 
doubly  dear.  Not  only  is  it  one  of  the  very  few 
analyses  of  the  man  and  poet,  written  and  published 
In  America,  but  it  is  the  only  one  ever  attempted  by 
a  woman. — Denver  Post  in  half-page  review. 


20  BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 

Poems  of  Walt   Whitman.     Clotli,   75  conts,   341 
I)a{,'cs. 

Whltmnn  llrod  and  wrote  before  Ihero  was  an 
Amerloan  socialist  movement,  jet  he  Is  the  poet  of 
American  socialism.  lie  grasped  the  profoundest 
meanings  "f  the  new  truths  discovered  hy  modern 
.science,  and  he  iii)!>licd  them  to  social  relatlon.s  emo- 
tionally while  Marx  was  applylnt;  them  scientifically. 
Those  who  would  realize  socialism  as  well  as  under- 
stand H  should   read  Whitman. 

Rebels  of  the  New  South.     A  novel.     By  Walter 
Marion   llayniond.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

"This  is  a  book  new  in  every  respect — style  ex- 
pression, subject.  It  has  the  boldness  of  a  Uu  Mau- 
rier,  the  originality  of  Amelle  Rives,  the  dash  of 
Dixon.  •  *  »  The  negro  dialect  is  bright  and 
always  natural.  The  expressions  used  are  worthy  of 
a  Joel  Chandler  Harris." — Richmond  (Va.)  New.s- 
Leader. 

"The  good  people  are  all  southern  socialists,  while 
the  villains  gravitate  northward  and  become  repub- 
licans. The  best  feature  of  the  book  is  its  negro 
dialect,  which-  is  artistic  in  its  way." — Chicago  I'ost. 

Modern  Socialism.     By   Charles   H.   Vail.     Cloth, 
75  cents. 

Scarcely  any  book  has  yet  been  presented  so  copi- 
ous in  valuable  quotations,  so  logical  in  its  deductions 
or  more  successful  in  clearness  of  expression.  It  is 
worthy  the  perusal  of  any  one  interested  in  the  social 
question,  whether  the  person  be  a  socialist  or  not. 
The  exhibition  of  the  principles  of  socialism  and  their 
result  applied  to  society  is  of  a  character  to  interest 
the  opposer  as  well  as  the  supporter  of  the  theory. 
It  comes  with  the  unmistakable  evidence  of  careful 
and  systematic  preparation  and  is  full  of  knowledge 
for  the  student  and  interest  for  the  general  reader. 
It  has  been  unhesitatingly  recommended  by  the  lead- 
ers of  socialist  thought  in  America  and  as  its  increas- 
ing sales  indicate  has  in  it  the  true  value  which  is 
appreciated  by  all  students  of  sociology.  The  book 
Is  well  printed  and  is  indexed  In  a  convenient  manner 
for  easy  reference. — The  Class   Struggle. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  21 

The  Ancient  Lowly:  A  History  of  the  Ancient 
Working  People,  from  the  Earliest  Kno\vn 
Period  to  the  Adoption  of  Christianity  by 
Constantine.  By  C.  Osborne  Ward.  Cloth, 
two  large  volumes,  $4.00.  Either  volume 
sold  separately  at  $2.00. 

The  class  struggle  between  those  who  live  by 
working  and  those  who  live  by  owning  is  as  old  as 
written  history.  But  history  has  from  the  first  been 
written  by  the  retainers  of  the  owning  class  and  it  is 
a  task  of  the  utmost  difficulty  to  discover  the  real 
facts  of  the  class  struggle  In  ancient  times.  This 
task  has  been  attempted  and  has  been  carried  out  in 
a  really  wonderful  manner  by  C.  Osborne  Ward. 

He  has  made  a  minute  study  of  the  Greek  and  Latin 
classics  and  has  edited  and  arranged  all  the  facts 
about  the  life  and  struggles  of  the  working  classes 
that  have  slipped  into  the  writings  of  ancient  histori- 
ans. His  study  was  not  coulined  to  published  works 
but  he  carefully  searched  the  great  libraries  of  Europe 
for  ancient  manuscripts  throwing  light  on  his  subject. 
Even  this  did  not  satisfy  him  and  he  journeyed  hun- 
dreds of  miles  on  foot  through  southern  Europe  and 
•northern  Africa  and  succeeded  in  finding  many  half 
effaced  inscriptions  which  he  deciphered,  thus  bring- 
ing to  light  many  undiscovered  facts  to  complete  his 
chain  of  evidence.  A  fuller  description  of  these  vol- 
umes will  be  found  in  "What  to  Bead  on  Socialism," 
mailed  on  request. 


The  Equilibration  of  Human  Aptitudes  and  Pow- 
ers of  Adaptation.  By  C,  Osborne  Ward. 
Cloth,  333  pages,  $1.50. 

Contents  :  Mechanism  of  Society,  dwarfing  effect  on 
the  individual  of  competition ;  Piracy  of  Aptitudes ; 
Plagiaries  of  Genius;  Concord  of  Faculties;  Funda- 
mental Errors,  objection  to  socialism  refuted ;  General 
Averages,  how  the  rewards  of  individuals  will  adjust 
themselves  under  collectivism ;  Comparative  Claims, 
paternalism  in  behalf  of  privileged  classes  contrasted 
with  co-operation  by  and  for  the  workers. 


22  HOOKS  ox   SOCIALISM,  KTC. 

A  Labor  Catechism  of  Political  Economy.  A 
Study  for  the  People.  Hy  V.  Osborne  Ward. 
Clotli,  :U)t  pa-,'cs.  $1.00. 

This  book  Is  writton  in  tho  form  of  question  and 
answer,  and  discusses  In  ample  detail  a  great  number 
of  the  problems  Incident  to  the  transition  from  capi- 
talism to  the  co-operative  commonwealth.  The  first 
edition  appeared  In  1.S77,  long  before  the  existence  of 
an  American  socialist  movement,  and  it  reflects  to 
some  extent  the  economic  conditions  of  the  time  and 
place  of  its  production,  but  the  atithor  was  a  careful 
student  of  the  writings  of  European  socialists,  and 
most  of  what  he  has  written  malies  excellent  propa- 
ganda today. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  23 


MISCELLANEOUS   BOOKS. 

God  and  My  Neighbor.  By  Robert  Blatchford. 
Cloth'ii  $1.00.  (Also  published  in  paper  at 
50  cents.) 

To  those  unfamiliar  with  the  writings  of  the  old 
and  present  day  critics  of  the  Bible  and  Orthodox 
Christian  faith,  this  book  would  come  almost  as  a 
revelation.  It  is  hard  to  classify  it ;  whether  to 
describe  it  as  the  utterance  of  the  resentment  of  a 
soul  which  has  realized  tlie  shams  of  theology,  or  the 
expressions  of  a  mind  that  has  become  convinced  that 
Orthodox  theology  is  and  always  has  been  inimical 
to  the  welfare  of  the  worker ;  or  whether  it  Is  the 
deliverance  of  one  who  has  outgrown  religion  of  any 
sort  and  who  sees  only  the  suffering  of  his  fellows, 
and  is  passionately  desirous  of  doing  something  to 
alleviate  their  woes.  Indeed,  the  latter  must  be  the 
truer  note  running  through  these  pages  which  arraign 
the  relation  of  the  Christian  churches  to  the  common 
people,  and  show  that  ecclesiasticism  is,  as  of  old, 
the  opponent  of  right  and  justice  when  they  concern 
the  slaves  of  the  Industrial  world. — Boston  Banner 
of  Light. 

Thoughts  of  a  Fool.  By  Evelyn  Gladys.  Cloth, 
$1.00. 

Tliis  is  a  series  of  reflections  on  life's  problems, 
discursive,  as  tliought  is  discursive,  effervescent 
with  wit,  often  pregnant  with  profound  philosophy. 
The  author  imagines  that  she  is  not  a  socialist. 
There  is  a  passage  in  which  she  sets  up  a  straw  man, 
called  socialism,  and  causes  it  to  cut  but  a  sorry 
figure.  Eliminate  this  passage,  however,  and  you  have 
the  most  brilliant  defense  of  the  ideals  of  the  co- 
operative commonwealth  which  American  literature 
contains. — Lilian   Hiller  Udell. 

Gracia,  a  Social  Tragedy.  By  Frank  Everett  Plum- 
mer.     Cloth,  Illustrated,  gilt  top,  $1.25. 

This  book,  now  in  its  fourth  edition,  is  a  story  in 
blank  verse  of  the  ever-new  tragedy  by  which  a  girl's 
sweetest  and  healthiest  instincts  may  lead  to  her 
"ruin"  under  the  social  institutions  built  up  by  capi- 
talism. The  story  is  vivid,  intense  and  dramatic,  and 
the  pictures  are  photographic  art  studies  posed  from 
life, 'Which  add  distinctly  to  the  impression  produced 
by  the  story.  The  social  questions  involved  are  dis- 
cussed in  a  booklet  entitled  "Was  It  Gracia's  Fault," 
which  will  be  mailed  to  any  address  for  a  two  cent 
stamp. 


'21  IH)<)KS    ON    SOCIALISM.  ETC. 

SOCIALIST  BOOKS 

In  Paper  Covers. 
A   Study    in    Government.      By    Henry    E.    Allen. 
r.iIxT,  5  cents. 

This  booklet  is  described  on  tlie  title  page  ns  a 
l>i>(k('t  niimiiiil  for  use  in  Ilii'  public  scliocls  and  liuincs 
of  AuiiM-liu,  trcatiiiK  of  ijiosciu  political  Issues  and 
their  l)cnrlnK  on  i)ulillc  welfare.  It  is  especially 
adapted  to  i)ropaj;auda  use  in  the  country  or  in  a 
small    town. 

Merrie  England  (Letters  to  John  Smith,  Work- 
ingman).  J'>y  IJuborl  Blatchford.  Paper, 
190  pages,  10*  cents. 

This  l)ool{.  written  aljont  ten  years  ap;o,  has  had  a 
circulation  in  lOngland  and  America  of  over  two  mil- 
lion copies.  No  other  booli,  socialist  or  non-socialist, 
ims  even  found  so  many  readers  in  so  brief  a  space  of 
time,  and  the  reason  is  that  this  booic  tallcs  in  a 
style  every  one  can  enjoy  on  a  subject  in  which  every 
one  is  interested.  Scarcely  any  other  book  is  so  good 
as  this  to  "start  people  thinking"  on  socialism. 

Socialist  Songs,  Dialogues  and  Recitations,  Com- 
piled by  Josephine  R.  Cole.  Paper,  55  pages, 
25  cents. 

This  book  has  been  prepared  in  answer  to  a  long- 
continued  demand  for  a  collection  of  "pieces"  suitable 
for  evening  entertainments,  and  of  a'  style  not  too 
diflBcult  to  be  learned  and  recited  by  children.  The 
book  will  be  found  indispensable  to  any  socialist  local 
or  group  of  comrades  who  wish  to  arrange  a  meeting 
to  combine  entertainment  with  propa;;anda.  F^very 
selection  teaches  socialism  in  an  indirect  way,  so  as  to 
interest  the  casual  listener  without  arousing  prejudice 
at  the  start. 

It  will  also  be  found  useful  for  children  from  social- 
ist families  who  have  to  recite  "pieces"  at  the  public 
schools. 

Crime  and  Criminals,  By  Clarence  S.  Darrow, 
Paper,  10  cents. 
This  is  an  address  delivered  to  the  prisoners  at  the 
county  jail  in  Chicago.  It  shows  the  real  cause  of 
what  "is  called  crime  and  the  real  way  to  put  an  end 
to  It. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  25 


Socialism,  Utopian  and  Scientific.  By  Frederick 
Engels.    Paper,  10  cents. 

This  is  printed  from  the  same  plates  as  the  cloth 
library  edition  which  we  sell  at  oO  cents,  but  is  on 
thin  paper  with  narrow  margins,  and  is  offered  in 
this  style  for  the  benefit  of  those  who  wish  copies  to 
give  away.  It  is  one  of  the  few  books  which  are 
simply  indispensable  to  any  one  wishing  to  under- 
stand modern  socialism. 

The  Day  of  Judgment.  By  George  D.  Herron. 
Paper,  10  cents. 

This  book  treats  of  the  impending  collapse  of  capi- 
talism and  the  crisis  with  which  the  working  class 
will  be  confronted  when  that  collapse  comes.  He 
shows  that  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  for  the  life 
of  the  future  that  socialists  of  the  world  be  ready  to 
act  strongly  and  wisely  when  the  crisis  comes. 

Life  of  Frederick  Engels.  By  Karl  Kautsky.  Trans- 
lated by  May  Wood  Simons.  Paper,  10 
cents. 

Engels  was  the  close  associate  of  Marx  in  the  early 
days  when  socialism  was  just  taking  shape  as  a  world 
movement,  and  this  sketch  of  his  life  contains  many 
facts  which  help  in  understanding  what  the  socialist 
movement  is  today. 

Socialism  and  Human  Nature,  Do  They  Conflict? 
By  Murray  E.  King.     Paper,  10  cents. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  satisfactory  answers  ever 
written  to  the  oft-repeated  objection  that  we  should 
have  to  change  human  nature  before  socialism  would 
be  possible. 

The  Republic  of  Plato.  Translated  in  English  by 
Alexander  Kerr,  Professor  of  Greek  in  the 
University  of  Wisconsin.     Paper,  75  cents. 

Professor  Kerr  has  given  the  English  language  an 
adequate  and  excellent  translation  of  "The  Republic," 
that  sketch  of  the  ideal  slate  outlined  by  the  great 
philosopher.  "The  Republic"  is  interesting  to  stu- 
dents of  sociology  in  that  it  is,  perhaps,  the  first 
in  that  series  of  books  including  Sir  Thomas  More's 
"Utopia"  and  Bellamy's  "Looking  Backward."— 
Indianapolis  Sentinel. 


26  BOOKS  ON   SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


It  Is  a  real  boon  to  students  to  have  the  "Ropubllc" 
made  arofssiblo  In  Knglish  In  this  incxponsive  form. 
-The  Dial. 

"The  Iti'pnblic  of  I'lato"  in  tlio  original  rii-cck  con- 
sists of  ten  books.  Of  thi'so.  fivo  iiro  now  ready, 
each  making  a  handsomely  printed  brochure  of  about 
slxt.v  pages  more  or  less,  with  dainty  paper  cover. 
I'rlce  of  each  book,  15.  cents,  postpaid. 

Socialist  Songs  vnth  Music.  Compiled  by  Charles 
II.  Korr.     Paper,  44  pages,  20  cents. 

This  song  book  contains  thirty-six  songs,  thirty- 
three  of  which  are  printed  with  music,  including 
piano  accompaniment.  It  is  the  only  American  col- 
lection of  songs  breathing  the  spirit  of  International 
Socialism. 

Socialist  locals  have  found  that  through  the  moans 
of  this  little  book  their  meetings  have  been  bright- 
ened, long  waits  have  been  relieved  and  a  definite 
program  is  much  more  easily  carried  out. 

Socialism,  What  It  Is  and  What  It  Seeks  to  Ac- 
complish. By  Wilhelm  Liebknecht.  Trans- 
lated by  May  Wood  Simons.  Paper,  G4 
pages,  10  cents. 

This  little  book  is  an  exposition  of  the  socialist 
philosophy  v.ritten  in  a  clear  and  concise  manner 
and  gives  a  historical  sketch  of  the  growtli  of  social- 
ism in  Gernikny.  It  is  easy  reading  and  well  adapted 
to  propaganda  purposes. 

No  Compromise,  No  Political  Trading.  By  Wilhelm 
Liebknecht.  Translated  by  A.  M.  Simons 
and  :\Iarcus  Hitch.  Paper,  64  pages,  10 
cents. 

A  most  important  work  for  the  socialist  movement 
at  its  present  stage  of  development  in  this  country. 
It  shows  the  necessity  for  keeping  clear  of  all  en- 
tangling alliances  with  capitalistic  parties. 

Capital  and  Labor.  By  a  Black-Listed  Machinist. 
Paper,  203  pages,  25  cents. 

This  book  contains  no  new  ideas  as  to  the  social- 
ist philosophy,  but  it  docs  state  that  philosophy 
in  a  way  that  will  attract  and  not  repel  the  average 
trade  unionist.    We  know  of  no  other  book  on  social- 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  27 

ism  that  tbe  average  workman  would  be  quite  so 
liliely  to  buy  if  put  in  front  of  liim,  or  to  read  after 
buying  it,  or  to  act  on  after  reading  it. 

Manifesto  of  the  Communist  Party.  By  Karl 
Marx  and  Frederick  Engels.  Paper,  10 
cents.  (Also  in  cloth,  bound  in  one  volume 
with  Liebkneeht's  "No  Compromise."  50 
cents. ) 

At  present  it  is  undoubtedly  the  most  widespread, 
the  most  international  production  of  all  Socialist 
Literature,  the  common  platform  acknowledged  by 
millions  of  workingmen  from  Siberia  to  California." 
—Extract  from  Engels'   Preface. 

"The  history  of  all  hitherto  existing  society  is  the 
history   of   class    struggles." 

Commencing  -nnth  this  postulate,  the  Manifesto  of 
the  Communist  Party  proceeds  in  a  masterly  manner 
to  proclaim  to  the  world  the  principles  of  that  party, 
now  known  as  the  International  Socialist  Party. 

Katharine  Breshkovsky — "For  Russia's  Freedom." 
By  Ernest  Poole.     Paper,  10  cents. 

This  is  the  true  story  of  a  Russian  woman  revolu- 
tionist who  has  been  addressing  immense  crowds  in 
American  cities.  "Daughter  of  a  nobleman  and  earn- 
est philanthropist;  then  revolutionist,  hard-labor 
convict,  and  exile  for  twenty-three  years  in  Siberia; 
and  now  a  heroic  old  woman  of  sixty-one,  she  has 
plunged  again  into  the  dangerous  struggle  for  free- 
dom." 

The  Economic  Foundation  of  Art.  By  A.  M.  Si- 
mons. Paper,  handsomely  printed,  uncut 
edges,  5  cents. 

This  book,  which  is  reprinted  from  "The  Crafts- 
man," a  monthly  periodical  devoted  to  the  interests 
of  art  allied  to  labor,  published  by  the  United 
Crafts,  Eastwood,  N.  Y.,  is  an  excellent  treatise. 
It  deals  better  than  most  au.v  other  work  on  similar 
lines  with  the  subject  of  the  joy  of  working  under 
proper  conditions,  and  furnishes  a  fitting  answer  to 
the  man  who  believes  that  people  will  stop  working 
under  socialism. 


28  BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


Class  Struggles  in  America.  By  A.  M.  Simons. 
Sei'ond  edition,  ri'viscd  and  enlarged,  04 
pages,  paper,  10  cents. 

In  this  book,  as  in  tbe  American  Farmer,  Com- 
rade Simons  lias  entered  tlie  almost  iinljrolieu  field 
of  American  Economic  history.  Facts  are  shown  here 
wliicli  prove  witli  greatly  added  force  tiie  doctrine 
of  liistorical  materialism.  To  tliose  who  learned 
tlieir  history  of  America  out  of  tlie  standard  school 
boolcs  this  boolc  will  be  a  great  surprise.  Many 
idols  are  destroyed,  but  tlie  vast  amount  of  authori- 
ties quoted  will  convince  any  one  of  the  theory  which 
this  book  is  intended  to  teach. 

Socialism  vs.  Single  Tax:  A  Verbatim  Report  of 
a  Debate  Held  at  Twelftli  Street  Turner 
Hall,  Chicago,  December  20,  lOO."].  For 
Socialism:  Ernest  Untermann,  Sejanour 
Stedman,  A.  M.  Simons.  For  Single  Tax: 
Louis  F.  Post,  Henry  H.  Hardinge,  John  Z. 
White.    Paper,  25  cents. 

This  debate  covers  practically  the  whole  field  of 
difference  between  two  schools  of  thought, — the  social- 
ist and  single  tax,— and  socialists  who  have  read  it 
declare  it  to  bo  one  of  tbe  most  complete  refutations 
of  the  single  tax  position  ever  set  forth.  An  interest- 
ing feature  of  the  booic  is  portraits  of  all  of  the 
debaters,  and  also  of  Karl  Marx  and  Henry  George. 
Wherever  there  are  any  remnants  of  single  tax  left, 
copies  of  this  book  should  be  on  hand  for  sale  by 
the  socialist  locals  and  every  socialist  should  be 
familiar  with  its  arguments  in  order  to  meet  any 
phase  of  single  tax  which  may  arise. 

The  Socialist  Campaign  Book.  Edited  under  the 
supervision  of  the  National  Campaign  Com- 
mittee   of   the   Socialist   Party.     Price,    25 

cents. 

This  book  was  prepared  some  years  ago,  but  con- 
tains in  convenient  form  a  large  amount  of  valuable 
information  regarding  industrial  conditions  and  the 
distrlljution  of  wealth  in  the  United  States,  which  is 
not  obtainable  elsewliere.  Only  a  few  copies  remain 
on  hand,  and  as  the  book  was  not  electrotyped  it  will 
be  Impossible  for  us  to  fill  orders  when  these  are 
exhausted. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  29 

Underfed  School  Children — The  Problem  and  the 
Remedy.    By  John  Spargo.    Paper,  10  cents. 

Statistics  are  given  of  the  pitiable  condition  of 
many  school  children  in  the  great  cities  of  this 
country,  and  the  degenerating  effect  of  this  wholesale, 
continuous  starvation  of  the  children  is  most  vividly 
portrayed.  This  is  followed  with  a  description  of  the 
work  done  by  the  socialists  in  France,  Italy,  Norway 
and  other  countries  in  meeting  this  problem.  Every 
school  teacher  and  parent  should  read  this  pamphlet, 
and  wherever  socialists  are  engaged  in  municipal 
campaign  it  will  be  found  extremely  effective  for 
both  propaganda  and  educational  purposes. 

Forces  that  Make  for  Socialism  in  America.  By 
John  Spargo.    Paper,  10  cents. 

This  recent  pamphlet  is  one  of  the  most  effective 
pieces  of  propaganda  that  has  yet  been  published.  Its 
literary  style  is  something  out  of  the  ordinary,  and 
it  deals  in  a  concrete  way  with  American  problems, 
applying  the  principles  of  socialism  to  facts  near  at 
hand.  The  trust  problem,  the  poverty  problem  and 
the  growing  intensity  of  the  class  war  between  capi- 
talists and  laborers  are  among  the  topics  treated. 

The  Socialist  Movement.  By  Rev.  Charles  H.  Vail. 
Paper,  32  pages,  with  portrait,  10  cents. 

This  is  an  excellent  book  for  the  beginner  in  social- 
ism as  it  gives  thoroughly,  in  a  simple  manner,  a 
treatise  on  the  class  struggle,  the  law  of  surplus 
value,  economic  determination,  and  shows  that  under 
socialism  only  will  the  golden  rule  become  workable. 
It  is  a  good  book  and  has  had  a  large  sale. 

Modern  Socialism.  By  Rev.  Charles  H.  Vail. 
Paper,  179  pages,  75  cents.  (Also  pub- 
lished in  cloth,  75  cents.) 

Principles  of  Scientific  Socialism.  By  Rev.  Charles 
H.  Vail.  Paper,  237  pages,  35  cents.  (Also 
published  in  cloth  at  $1.00.) 

These  two  books,  described  more  fully  elsewhere  in 
this  catalogue,  are  at  once  simple  and  scientific,  and 
are  well  adapted  to  put  into  the  hands  of  inquirers 
who  have  as  yet  read  nothing  on  socialism. 


30  BOOKS  ON   SOC'IAMSM,  ETC. 

The  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  at   Hand.     By  C.  W. 

WooUlriil^'c,    ]\[.    I).      PapiM-,    fit    paf>;('s,    10 
cents. 

This  Is  nn  pxrellont  book  for  Kivin>:  to  n  minister 
or  n  cliurch  niembpr.  It  shows  how  tho  toachln;;s  of 
Jpsiis  lead  iliroctly  to  soclalistn,  niid  It  inoroovcr  j^lves 
a  strouff  arRurnont  for  the  couimou  ownershii)  of  the 
moans  of  production. 

The  Root  of  All  Kinds  of  Evil.     By  Rev.  Stewart 
Sheldon,  Paper,  10  cents. 

This  hook  is  by  a  prominent  ConKrejiational  minis- 
ter, who  has  never  been  actively  identified  with  the 
socialist  movement,  and  whose  studies  have  been 
alonK  wholly  different  lines  from  those  usually  fol- 
lowed by  socialists.  It  i.s  noteworthy  for  the  fact  that 
from  tliese  different  premises  he  lias  arrived  in  his 
own  way  at  the  socialist  position,  and  holds  that 
"evil"  actions  are  the  result  of  unfavorable  economic 
conditions,  and  that  the  way  to  modify  people's 
character  for  the  better  is  to  modify  these  conditions. 
It  is  thus  one  of  the  l>est  books  to  put  into  the  hands 
of  relisious  people  as  an  introduction  to  our  more 
scientific  literature. 

A   Socialist   View  of  Mr.  Rockefeller.     By  John 
Sparge.     Paper,  5  cents. 

Rockefeller  is  a  picturesque  figure  which  in  the  pop- 
ular mind  stands  for  modern  capitalism.  Spargo,  in 
his  usual  vigorous  and  charming  style,  has  here  writ- 
ten of  the  millionaire  in  a  dispassionate  and  con- 
vincing way  which  will  appeal  to  many  who  have  as 
yet  given  no  serious  tliought  to  socialist  ideas.  The 
pamphlet  is  handsomely  printed,  and  carries  a  unique 
picture  of  Rockefeller  on  the  front  page. 


BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC.  31 


POCKET    ZiIBRAHV    OT    SOCIAI.ISM. 

(Booklets  of  32  pagres,  envelope  size,  5  cents  each.) 

.^1.     Woman    and   the    Social   Problem.      By    May 

Wood   Simons. 

2.     The    Evolution    of    the    Class    Strugrgfle.      By 

Wm.   H.   Noyes. 

.--3.     Imprudent  Marriag^es.     By  Robert  Blatchford. 

4.  Packingtown.     By   A.   M.    Simons. 

5.  Realism  in  literature  and  Art.     By  Clarence 

S.   Darrow. 

6.  Sing-le  Tax  vs.  Socialism.     By  A.  M.   Simons. 

7.  "Wagre-Lataor  and  Capital.     By  Karl  Marx. 

S.  The  Man  Under  the  Machine.  By  A.  M.  Si- 
mons. 

9.  The  Mission  of  the  Workingf  Class.  By  Rev. 
Charles   H.   Vail. 

10.  Morals   and  Socialism.     By  Cliarles  H.   Kerr. 

11.  Socialist    Song's.      By    William    Morris    and 

Others. 

12.  After  Capitalism,   What?     By   Rev.   William 

T.   Brown. 

13.  Rational  Prohibition.     By  Walter  L.  Young. 

14.  Socialism  and  Parmers.     By  A.   M.  Simons. 

15.  How    I    Acquired    My    Millions.      By    W.    A. 

Corey. 
<^16.     Socialists  in  Prench  Municipalities.     A  com- 
pilation from  official  reports. 
,17.     Socialism   and    Trade    TTnionism.      By    Daniel 
Lynch   and   Max   S.   Hayes. 

18.  Plutocracy  or  Nationalism,  Which?     By  Ed- 

ward Bellamy. 

19.  The  Real  Religion  of  To-Day.     By  Rev.  W^il- 

liam  T.   Brown. 

20.  Why  1  Am  a  Socialist.     By  Prof.  George  D. 

Herron. 

21.  The    Trust    Question.      By    Rev.    Charles    H. 

Vail. 

22.  How    to    Work    for    Socialism.      By    Walter 

Thomas  Mills. 

23.  The  Axe   at  the  Root..    By  Rev.  William   T. 

Brown. 

24.  What  the  Socialists  Would  Do  If  They  Won 

in  This  City.     By  A.  M.  Simons. 

25.  The  Folly  of  Being  "Good."     By  Charles  H. 

Kerr. 

26.  Intemperance  and  Poverty.    By  T.  Twining. 

27.  The    Relation   of   Religion   to    Social   Ethics. 

By  Rev.  William  T.  Brown. 
.   28.     Socialism  and  the  Rome.     By  May  Walden. 


32  BOOKS  ON  SOCIALISM,  ETC. 


29.  Trasts     and     Imperialism.       By     II.     Gaylord 

Wilsliiro. 

30.  A    Sketch    of    Social    Zlvolntion.      By    H.    W. 

lioyd   Miuk.TV. 

31.  Socialism   vs.   Anarchy.      By   A.    M.   Simons. 
3-.     Indastrial  Democracy.     P.y  .T.   W.   Kdloy. 

33.  The  Socialist  Party — Flatform,   Constitution, 

Etc. 

34.  The  Pride  of  Intellect.   By  Franklin  H.  Went- 

worth. 

35.  The  Philosophy  of  Socialiam.     By  A.   M.    Sl- 

inon.s. 

36.  An  Appeal  to  the  Voung-.     By  Peter  Kropot- 

kin. 

37.  The  Kingrdom  of  God  and  Socialism.     By  Rev. 

Robert    M.    W^'bster. 

38.  Easy  Lessons  in   Socialism.     By  William   H. 

T.ffRiiK-woli. 

39.  Socialism  and  the  Organized  Xiabor  Moveiuont. 

By  May  Wood   Simons. 

40.  The    Capitalists'    Union,    or    Iiahor    Unions, 

Which? 

41.  The     Socialist    Catechism..     By    Charles    E. 

Cline. 

42.  Civic  Evils.     By  C.  IT.  Reed. 

43.  Our  Bourgeois  Iiiterature,  the  Season  and  the 

Remedy.     By  Upton  Sinclair. 

44.  The  Scab.     By  Jack  London. 

.-45.  Confessions  of  a  Drone.  By  Joseph  Medill 
Patter-s^on. 

These  forty-five  books  will  all  be  mailed  to  one 
address  on  receipt  of  $1.25. 

The  books  described  in  this  catalogue  are  not 
to  be  found  in  most  bookstores.  The  g.uickeBt  and 
safest  way  to  get  them  is  to  write  to  the  address 
on  the  first  page.  Prices  include  postage,  and  any 
book  in  the  list  will  be  mailed  promptly  on  receipt 
of  price. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
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